Colours of the Supernatural
by weirdwizardvampiregirl
Summary: Leah had not planned on being a shape-shifter. She had not planned on befriending the cult of vampires, the Cullens. She had not planned on falling in love with a vampire, but, somehow, now, she was prepared to kill for him. She was prepared to die for him. She had not planned on becoming part of the dark, dangerous world of the supernatural, but it had claimed her as its own.
1. Anniversary

The drums, the flutes, the pounding of feet to the music, they were all foreign sounds to Aro, leader of the Volturi. He stared at the scene below him careful to keep his head clear of any thought. No musings, considerations, ideas, plots, commentary, only pure observation was allowed. His main goal? Avoid the attention of the Olympic Coven's mind-reader. He knew he had to keep his head empty and, as long as, he maintained this state of mind he hoped Edward Cullen would not pick up on his presence.

He had arrived spontaneously and believed he was successful thwarting the Olympic Coven's finest jewel, the vampire who could see the future, the greatest desire of his frozen heart, Alice. But it was not the time for thoughts pertaining Alice.

The scene which had unfolded before him was so incredible that, any typical vampire passerby would have taken it for a vision or dubbed themselves insane and fled.

The large fire in the center of the clearing spit black smoke into the air and, though he stood a ways away, Aro's vampire senses could feel the slight touch of heat which the fire produced. It illuminated the bodies which danced around it.

The bodies were of all shapes and sizes and belonged to an array of different beings. There were the lean, fit, pale bodies of the vampires always in perfect harmony with each other and the music, the muscular, bronzed bodies of the shape-shifters and the clumsy, impulsive bodies of the humans. They danced together. Vampires with vampires, but also with wolves and humans.

Of course, only the Cullens could be at the center of such an epidemic. But it wasn't only the Cullens, there were friends of the Cullens, as well, which disturbed Aro to the point that he felt a strange chill climb up his back. He began to count, but buried the line of thought quickly. He turned away and ran from the celebration.

One year ago, many of the same vampires and wolves had come between Aro and his desires. The memory, still fresh in his ancient mind, set him aflame with, yes, jealousy. He, Aro, and the Volturi, would get everything they wanted, everything the Cullens withheld from them. They would become, again, indisputably, the most powerful group of supernatural beings on the Earth. In good time it would come to pass as he saw it.

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Disclaimer: None of this is mine it all belongs to Stephanie Meyer! This is my first time publishing a fanfic I hope y'all enjoy! Constructive criticism and suggestions are welcome thank you!


	2. The Engagement

Chapter 2

The Engagement

Leah Clearwater could feel a headache coming on. Each pound of the drums seemed to strike directly into her mind.

She had been fine only minutes before, at ease. The thought made her snort with derision.

_So this is what it's come to_, she thought, _bloodsuckers put me at ease now_. She watched their bodies move around the fire. The large one, Emmett, threw his beautiful, blond mate into the air, a little too far into the air, attracting the attention of the surrounding humans.

Meanwhile, Bella, Edward and their pretty little daughter danced around hands joined. Leah's eyes moved swiftly to track the progress of the newcomers, the leeches she knew much less than the Cullens.

There were two blond sisters, Tanya and Kate, along with a pair of older vampires whose names she had not yet memorized. Waltzing with Kate was a tall, rugged vampire named Garret. He was only one year clean of human blood and his presence particularly made Leah nervous.

But it wasn't Garret who caused her headache, it was her own brother, Seth. He had spent the majority of the night following around Tanya and, now, commenced to dance with her, grinning like an idiot.

Leah grinded her teeth together eyes locked on her brother willing him to look her way. The fool always took things a step too far. Always. Ok, so he had been right about the Cullens they weren't all bad. In fact, Leah found the whole drinking animal blood instead of hunting humans thing rather noble. After her encounter with the blood-eyed Volturi, how could she not?

Since the battle, she allowed herself to grow closer with the Cullens. It wasn't a friendship, Leah refused to recognize it as such, she viewed it more like a mutual alliance. She would fight for them and they would fight for her. They had each other's backs, case closed. But, Seth, no Seth didn't just want an alliance, he didn't even just want a friendship, he wanted to be part of their family. Every time Jake was there, Seth wanted to be there. When he had free time, he visited the Cullens. When he was supposed to be patrolling, he stopped by the Cullen's. It was ridiculous.

And now he had moved on to their friends. Their friends who he didn't even know. Tanya was smirking as Seth chattered away eyes smoldered over, blind to everything other than her. He almost looked as though he had imprinted.

Leah shuddered and had to put her head in her hand.

"If there's a God then please, please prove yourself now and don't let my brother imprint on a vampire," she muttered to herself. A chuckle made her jerk her head upwards.

"I didn't know you were the praying type, Leah?" said Carlisle Cullen.

Leah shrugged. She liked Carlisle Cullen enough, he may even have been her favorite, but she wasn't about to share any more private thoughts with him.

"Excuse me, but this place is giving me a headache," muttered Leah beginning to rise so she could take her leave.

Just then the music stopped and the mike screeched loudly.

"Ooops, sorry," Quil laughed into the mike. "Ok, folks, we have a couple people who would like to make an announcement so just sit tight."

The words seemed to be directed towards her and Leah, reluctantly, retook her seat. She watched Charlie Swan and her mother, Sue, mount the stage. She had been hoping to avoid this part of the night and planned to leave long before it, but, up until Seth's dance with death, she had been enjoying herself and forgotten.

Charlie put one hand around Sue's waist and the other on the mike. "Um well, hello everyone. I just want to say that this has been a fantastic night great music, food-"

"-and company!" Sue interjected to answering cheers.

"Yes, of course, said Charlie smiling, and great company. I would especially like to address my daughter, Bella, my son-in-law Edward and my beautiful granddaughter Renesmee. Also, I would like to thank my longtime friend, Renee and her husband, Phil Dwyer for traveling all the way to our small, rainy corner of the world to celebrate tonight with us."

Leah observed a human woman who greatly resembled Bella, but without the leechy pale skin and with dreamy, brown eyes instead of piercing tawny ones. A man sat holding her hand beside her.

_Ugh, couples_...Leah wrinkled her nose.

Charlie took a deep breathe, "I've watched my daughter as a married woman for some time. I've seen the way she looks at her family and, I will admit, it made me a bit sad to see in her possession what I no longer had. But then, I turned around, and there was a beautiful woman," he tightened his arm around Sue and smiled down at her, "and I saw my eyes reflected in her own and, seeing myself reflected by her, I realized I loved her. And, so, a week later, I asked her to marry me."

There were murmurs around the crowd, mostly from the humans and the wolves. Leah rolled her eyes, they were idiots if they hand't seen this coming.

Sue took the mike smiling up at Charlie, "and I said yes."

Cheers erupted, Emmett stamped his feet and the wolves pumped their fists in the air. Leah forced a smile and clapped politely.

It wasn't that she didn't want Sue to marry Charlie. She was happy for her mother, she truly was, but she couldn't help, but feel like it had all been too rushed. Still every morning when she woke up there was a moment she believed Harry was still alive, a moment of bliss, and then the world would come crashing down on her again. At least, Charlie had talked to Seth and her before his proposal, but, somehow, the announcement made it infinitely more real. And it wasn't only the engagement itself that was making Leah uncomfortable.

"We will be wed on the coming 4th of February at Florence, Italy. We know it's a long travel and short notice, but we hope most of you will be able to make it, of course, we entirely understand if you cannot." Sue smiled down at the crowd where the wolves and the vampires responded to her announcement less enthusiastically than the first.

Leah knew they were all thinking the same as her. Italy was the home of the Volturi.

_Why the hell would they choose Italy of all places!? _Jacob demanded sending the question across to her mind forcefully.

They were trotting around the exterior of their territory before visiting the Cullens to discuss the announcement.

_Don't ask me, Jake. Sue has always loved Italy. She thinks it's romantic. I think it's as stupid as you, believe me. _She knew he would too because he could feel her emotions between the bond their minds shared.

_There's no way they will just leave us be..._The thought was rhetorical and so she chose not to answer. They were already in agreement anyways.

The smell of vampires nearly overpowered her senses as they approached the Cullen household. Jacob and her split in different directions so they could transform and change. Leah pulled on sweatpants and a baggy long sleeve shirt. She didn't feel the need to dress nicely for a coven of bloodsuckers, even though she kind of did like them.

The Cullens were arguing loudly over the announcements of the night when Leah walked in.

"They just simply have to change location. I'll pay Charlie a visit tomorrow and convince him." Said Bella with dangerous, flashing eyes.

"I don't like this, only because it makes it seem like we are afraid of them, hiding almost." Said Esme uneasily. "We have always lived in peace under the Volturi, of course, they did lose my trust last year, but I don't identify Aro as a fool and I believe they will not harm us."

Edward shook his head, "They want revenge. I heard it in all of their heads last year. We humiliated them. Going to Italy now would make it appear as though we were taunting them."

Jacob snorted, "Let them feel taunted then. Even if they do decide to come for a visit we can just send them back with their tails between their legs like last time."

"There are going to be way less of us this time, Jacob!" Bella replied harshly, "and if they come to fight I expect it will be all of them. They won't take any chances."

"Dr. Cullen, what do you think?" Asked Jacob looking towards the eldest of the vampire coven.

Carlisle had, all the while, been gazing thoughtfully out the window. He took a few minutes before speaking. "If we allow Sue and Charlie to wed in Italy, then it must be with the permission of the Volturi. I would propose a few of us go ahead of Sue and Charlie and seek counsel with Aro. Depending on his...thoughts we proceed from there."

The group sat quietly as they considered. Leah struggled to decide which side in the argument she would take. On one hand, she loathed the idea of avoiding a country only for fear of a gang of leeches, but on the other, she feared for the safety of her family and friends.

"The group would have to stay and watch over Charlie and Sue as they prepare for the wedding," Alice added.

"You think counsel with Aro is a good idea?" Asked Bella sharply.

"I foresee no major issues growing out of counsel with Aro. Of course, I wouldn't be able to join you on that part. My presence would only tempt Aro to plot against us." Alice said as she gazed thoughtfully out the window.

"Who do you think we should send?" Asked Carlisle calmly.

"You, Carlisle, the Volturi have a great amount of respect for you and Edward in order to discourage Aro from hostile thoughts." Alice stated eyes snapping back to attention.

"I will join Edward and Carlisle," Bella stated moving to stand beside her husband.

"Jake, would you stay and watch Renesmee?"

Jake shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot, "I feel like I would do more to ensure her safety by accompanying you to Italy than back here."

"I agree," said Alice, "the Volturi will be intimidated when they see Jake. It will frustrate them to know our alliance with the wolves has only grown stronger."

"I'll go too," said Leah without thinking.

"Absolutely not," Jake snapped, "only me I wouldn't endanger our pack like that."

Carlisle gave him a strange look, "I think it would be wiser if you brought a few members of your pack, Jake. The Volturi will want time to, well study you to be frank, before airplanes of you start arriving on their shores."

"Very true," Alice noted.

"Ok, so Jake goes and takes his pack and Alice, Jasper, Emmett and I will take care of Renesmee while you are all gone." Said Rosalie.

"What! No way, love, I'm going over to Italy," said Emmett eying Rosalie cautiously, but she only shrugged and smiled a little bit.

"More Renesmee time for me then."

"We will accompany you, as well," said Garret with his arm around Kate.

"Two more bodies couldn't hurt," said Emmett.

"We don't want to look like we're planning on causing trouble either, though," Edward cautioned.

"I will stay home," Esme announced, "then you will have 11 assuming Jake's pack all go."

After a few more small arguments, the group was settled. Carlisle, Edward, Bella, Emmett, Garret, Kate, Jake, Seth, Quil, Embry and Leah would be going to Italy in two weeks' time to speak with the Volturi.

The prospect both thrilled and frightened Leah. She knew the whole goal of the mission was peace and, yet, she couldn't help, but hope she would have the chance to tear a few vampire heads off.


	3. Underneath Volterra

Chapter 3

Underneath Volterra

Volterra sent shivers down her back. Every inch of it seemed to scream "Home of the Leeches." Windows and doorways all had the same arch shape. Every building was made of the same brown stone that looked only minutes form crumbling away. The houses were attached together and cast one giant, encompassing shadow into the narrow streets. Leah imagined vampires around every corner and could hear her heart's increased beating in her chest.

"Look at the sky," Seth whispered, fear and awe in his voice.

The sky was striped with pinks and oranges which contrasted against a blood red sun sinking below the horizon. Leah didn't want to consider what this strange display of nature could foreshadow.

"Would you care for some dinner?" Carlisle asked of Jake, Leah, Seth, Quil and Embry.

They traded surprised looks among each other.

"Um, Dr. Cull, don't you think we should visit the leeches before anything else?" Suggested Jake hesitantly.

"Oh, there's really no need to go to them it will be better if we let them come to us."

"But...we don't want them to find us and go all bloodsucky because we didn't let them know we were stopping by."

"They already know we're here," said Carlisle matter of fact like, "Demetri will have announced the instant Emmett, Edward, Bella and I left Forks. They will come find us in good time, actually, they could be watching us now." The idea did not seem to trouble Carlisle, but it put the wolves on edge and, if they had been hungry before Carlisle's offer, they were not anymore.

The group made its way gradually towards the plaza where, according to Edward, Bella had saved his life. Leah briefly considered how a human girl could save a vampire's life, but was spared the guesswork as Bella launched into the story. Not ten minutes later, three cloaked figures approached from across the courtyard. Simultaneously, they looked towards the horizon then dropped their hoods.

Their faces were distant memories to Leah. When she was a wolf, she tended to see things differently, however, she recognized one as the vampire who had remarked "interesting company you keep" to Carlisle in reference to the wolves. She fought the urge to bare her teeth at them, the rude vampire in particular.

The Volturi guardsmen observed the small company in front of them and it was the largest who finally spoke, "Greetings, Carlisle, and to what do we owe this pleasure?" He smiled a little dangerously at the end.

"Felix," said Carlisle inclining his head, "Santiago, Demetri, I'm happy to see you all well. We have come to speak with Aro."

Felix seemed to be waiting for him to say more, but, after a few seconds, it became clear that that was all the information Carlisle was going to share.

"Aro was expecting as much, let's bring them down," said the one Leah had deducted was named Demetri, the one who had made the rude comment last year.

They followed Demetri through the courtyard and then through narrow streets. The vampire, Felix, fell in step next to her. Leah risked a glance up at him. He stood way over six feet and huge muscles bulged beneath his cloak. He had straight black hair along with the typical vampire complexion. His eyes were a strange shade of violet which Leah concluded to be contacts lenses.

"So we never had a formal introduction I noticed, I'm Felix," he grinned and stuck out his hand.

"Leah Clearwater," said Leah ignoring his hand.

"Feisty...oh hey, Bella! How you doing?" He winked at the newest Cullen who smiled politely back.

"Better than last time we met, I have to admit."

Felix proceeded to talk with each person individually though he could only get names out of the wolf pack.

"Would you mind if a few of you waited outside?" Asked Demetri, stopping seemingly at random. Leah looked around him trying to figure out which of the houses belonged to the Volturi.

Garret and Kate stepped aside along with Quil, Embry and Seth at Jake's command. Leah wondered whether she was glad or not that Jake hadn't told her to stay behind.

The dark skinned Volturi guard, Santiago, who had not spoken yet, snapped his fingers, "Watch here."

Quil growled deep in his throat feeling the insult of the Volturi guard's order. Santiago backed into the shadow and kicked a sewer grate out of its hole. He then leapt inside of it. Leah heard his soft landing on a floor some twenty feet below. Carlisle followed suit as did the rest of the Cullen vampires. Jake approached the hole before her.

"Someone can catch you at the bottom, if you need," Demetri offered.

"We'll be fine," Jake growled back and stepped into the opening. He landed considerably louder than the vampires, but Leah could tell he was fine. Leah approached the hole confidently. She glanced once towards Demetri who stood beside the entrance. He was looking her up and down curiously. She shot him a quick glare before jumping.

She landed softer then Jake, but not as lightly as the vampires. Before her eyes could adjust, Demetri and Felix had joined them. They began walking at a brisk pace and Leah had to concentrate to keep up without breaking into a jog. They went through a set of large, wooden doors into a room with florescent lights and a human woman sitting behind a desk.

Felix paused to flirt with the human before leading them through an arched doorway. Leah shot Bella a confused look. Why was a human woman working for the Volturi? Bella returned her gaze with a sad, knowledgeable shrug. Leah shuddered and caught, this time, both Demetri and Santiago observing her with frowns. She narrowed her eyes at them and Santiago glared before stalking back to the front of the group, while Demetri politely averted his gaze.

The room they entered resembled a throne room of some long dead English king. Leah's eyes went straight to the three vampires who sat comfortably back in their lush chairs. She remembered them well from the field that day. The one with nearly waist length brown hair was Marcus, the blond with darting, mistrustful eyes was Caius and the center one, clearly the leader with long, black hair was Aro. Behind Aro, stood a female vampire who kept her hand hovering idly over Aro's shoulder. Demetri went to stand beside Aro's throne while Felix and Santiago remained beside Leah's group.

Aro looked them all up and down curiously.

"And here I was thinking you would never allow me to meet your magnificent friends! What a pleasant surprise, Carlisle, what an unexpected delight, indeed!" Aro jumped to his feet nearly too quickly for Leah's eyes to track.

"That's not exactly why we are here, old friend, but, I suppose, it's partly." said Carlisle as he held out his hand.

Aro's smiled widened and he clasped Carlisle's hand within his own. Leah remembered that the leader of the Volturi had the ability to read every thought in a person's life with only a single touch. Though she couldn't imagine how that worked, it still sent shivers down her spine. Aro held Carlisle's hand for quite some time and Leah allowed her eyes to roam the room.

There was one other vampires she had previously taken no notice of. She was a woman with curly blond hair and a face slightly rounder than most vampires, but still beautiful. Her expression was one Leah wasn't accustomed to associating with vampires; discomfort, even fear.

Briefly, she met the gaze of Demetri whose eyes were also scanning the room. He was leaning casually against Aro's vacant throne with his arms crossed. His wavy black hair had a slightly messy appearance and just barely went past his ears. Leah noticed his skin was not as pale as the typical vampire's. It had a certain ebony tint to it. His eyes were dark burgundy.

This observation made Leah check Felix's eyes again and she found them red as well. They must have removed their contacts without her noticing. The last guard, Santiago, was about the same height as Demetri, but broader in the shoulders and hips. His eyes were a brighter red than the other two.

Just as Leah finished her observations, Aro finished his examination of Carlisle's thoughts.

"Gone are the days when we could merely speak to each other and never doubt the truth." Said Carlisle softly.

Aro looked legitimately saddened by his words, "hopefully they can return again."

"Indeed," Carlisle agreed.

"Well, brothers, the Cullens come to us with a joyful announcement. Bella Swan's father is to marry Sue Clearwater. Your mother, my dear, correct?" He smiled towards Leah who tried to hide her dislike at being called "my dear" and nodded. "Furthermore, they wish to be married in our home country of Italy! In Florence, not very far from here! Now, while I wish them the best, we are faced by a few, um, possible issues. The wedding will be rather large and will include twelve shape-shifters and, at least, seven vampires. Typically, we would rather not draw attention to this part of our country and we cannot predict how much attention the shape-shifters may attract."

"Less than vampires," said Leah and Jake in unison.

"Ah, but you cannot prove that!" Exclaimed Aro. I have seen in Carlisle's thoughts that some times you can't control when you transform."

"Phase and it's difficult when you're new," said Jake, "but, still, we have more control than newborn vampires. Usually." He added after looking towards Bella.

"But you are all new, by our terms," stated Aro. "How old are you? Seventeen and twenty-one? You can't possibly have total control over your abilities."

"I think you saw for yourself what "control" we have over our abilities," said Leah the words coming our more hostile than she had planned. "We aren't werewolves or vampires, we don't have bloodlust, our minds are always in control, even when we're wolves."

Caius made a derisive noise. "So you say! Why are we debating this, Aro? We simply can't allow twelve wolves to go roaming around Tuscany. Especially, when we are throwing Carlisle and his coven into the mix." His nose wrinkled slightly in dislike.

Aro made no reaction towards Caius, but gazed at Leah thoughtfully. "As a wolf, there must be some amount of instinct, no? Or else you would not be the successful fighters you are."

"When we are wolves there's instinct, yes, but it's not to hunt or kill, it's to protect." Leah's voice took an edge of pride as she described the differences between herself and the vampires.

"To protect whom?" Asked Aro eagerly.

"Brother, I believe you are moving off topic!" Snapped Caius.

Aro sighed, disappointed. "I suppose I am. I'm afraid we will have to finish our conversation another time, Leah Clearwater." He looked at her regretfully.

"Looking forward to it," she muttered sarcastically, but Aro paid her comment no mind. Instead, he walked over and took the blond vampire's hand. "What do you think we should do about the wedding, Ellie, dearest?"

The blond vampire looked up at the Cullens her eyes ending on Leah. "I think it wouldn't be proper of us to deny the couple their choice of marriage destination," muttered Ellie, her voice quieter than the other vampires', "as for the wolves, it isn't my place to say what I think."

"Of course, we would respect any opinion of yours if you change your mind and wish to voice it. Brothers, what say you?" Aro turned to Marcus and Caius.

"Absolutely not," snapped Caius, "the couple may be wed here, if they wish, but only them."

"I see no problem with a large wedding," said Marcus, "as long as we post guards to ensure it won't become out of hand."

"I agree with you, Marcus." Said Aro. Caius let out a hiss of rage, but Aro pressed on. "I trust Carlisle to understand the importance of secrecy especially so close to us in Volterra. However, I still find it extraneously risky." He paused for effect, "I propose we send a couple of our guards to accompany the Cullens and the wolf pack to Florence. They can report back on whether or not they believe we should allow the wedding to commence as planned. Additionally, I believe it would be safest if the shape-shifters refrained from taking on their wolf forms for the duration of their stay in Italy unless faced with a life threatening situation."

Leah growled low in her throat, but, too her surprise, Jake nodded and said, "of course."

Carlisle too was nodding, though his face was set in a frown.

Cauis gave an exasperated sigh, "Fine, carry forth with that plan, I suppose."

Marcus remained silent, but Aro seemed to assume he was in agreement with the new plan and clapped once. "Felix, Demetri, would you accompany the Cullens and their friends to Florence and lend them any assistance they may need?"

The two vampires nodded. "Sounds like a pretty good time to me." Felix grinned towards the Cullens and sent a wink, Leah was pretty sure, at Bella.

Leah looked desperately around for someone, anyone, to make an argument. She didn't want to be observed by any leeches. Especially, she didn't want her behavior to be the deciding factor in Sue's wedding. She could feel herself beginning to panic as she cast her eyes around for help.

Jake shot her a warning glance and touched her lightly on the arm. Meanwhile, Aro and Carlisle embraced and Felix punched Edward lightly on the arm smirking broadly. Leah gritted her teeth and and focused on calming her heartbeat.

Aro bid them all farewell and the group took their leave, but Leah couldn't resist one look back at the Volturi leaders. Her eyes met Aro's. He smiled at her in a way that suggested he knew something she was sadly unaware of. She turned away wondering if he already had planned when they would be finishing their conversation.

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Disclaimer: I don't own any of this! It's all Stephanie Meyer's world!

Thank you everyone for the reviews! they've been wonderful! Also, let me know if you start thinking the chapters are too long or start craving some Demetri POV


	4. Italian Vampires

Chapter 4

Italian Vampires

Leah stared out the window of her hotel room. They had been in Florence for a couple days, but she still found herself wanting to drink it in at it every second she could. It was beautiful, beautiful and modern. The architecture, especially the bridges, the statues, the artwork, the museums, the churches, the boats, the people, the food. Leah couldn't help, but be enchanted by its beauty.

Additionally, the furthest she had ever travelled was California on a high school field trip since Henry never made enough money to bring them on vacations. Florence included tourists of seemingly hundreds of nationalities. It was impossible to stand out or blend in. Leah liked to get caught up in the languages around her. One time she sat for an hour listening to a mother and daughter have a conversation in French.

She even enjoyed listening to Demetri and Felix when they had quick conversations in Italian. She had never admitted that to them, but, for some reason, Felix had taken to calling her bellezza or femmina lupa meaning beauty or she wolf. Honestly, Leah enjoyed the sounds of the names, but she glared at him anyways whenever he used one.

Demetri offered to ask him to stop making up Italian names for her on her behalf, but she told him not to bother, mostly, because she refused to accept any sort of help from either member of the Volturi.

The two Volturi guards weren't as awful as Leah had feared they would be. Of course, it made her restless knowing they must be hunting and she found herself often checking their eyes. They were always wearing those damn contacts which made it difficult. Additionally, it enraged her that their main purpose, though never spoken out loud again, was to watch her and her pack. Leah could just see them memorizing the way they all acted, dissecting their behavior, searching for weaknesses. She did her best to avoid situations where it was only her and a member of the Volturi.

Leah was distracted from her thoughts by a soft knock on the door to her hotel room. She ran over and opened it to find Emmett smiling down at her.

"Aye, what's good?"

"Trying to enjoy the little time I get away from vampires."

Emmett chuckled, "We're going out tonight to some bar Carlisle and Jake found today. They say it has good music."

"Are _they _going to be there," Leah said so quietly she could barely hear the words come out.

Emmett had no trouble deciphering them and laughed, "Yah, sorry, Bellezza. They haven't really been that bad, though. They could have been much, much worse if they wanted. For example, Aro wanted them standing guard outside your rooms every night, but they had the decency to ignore that order."

Leah wrinkled her nose, "Good, I can't imagine vampire being the first thing I smell every time I open my door."

Emmett smirked and punched her lightly on the arm. "Oops, sorry that was kind of hard."

"No, don't worry I'm a little tougher than your typical human."

"Right, one of your wolfy things."

Leah laughed, "Yah one of my wolfy things."

"Well I will see you at the front of the hotel in one hour. Dress nice and, just to warn you, Tanya is going to be joining us. She's here early for the wedding."

Emmett waved goodbye and Leah went back into her room. She shut the door and groaned. _Great, now I get to babysit Seth all night and make sure he doesn't make an idiot of himself. _

With impeccable timing, there was a loud series of knocks at her door. Leah walked over and opened it up to find Seth standing there with only a towel around his waist holding up two shirts.

"Which one? And I need you to smell these colognes and tell me which smells better to a girl."

Leah contemplated her last thought and added, _too late._

The bar was actually a good choice by Carlisle and Jake. The music was upbeat, but not pop, it reminded Leah of the music the tribe played sometimes. Seth was already up and dancing with Tanya. The two were laughing while they bounced around in perfect synchronization. For his gangly body, Seth was a rather good dancer. Carlisle was talking with the man working the bar asking about its establishment. Garrett and Kate were flirting and rubbing shoulders and stuff like that which made Leah want to gag. Edward and Bella had flown back home after the meeting with Aro unable to be away from Renesmee for any longer. She distracted herself by playing the accent/language game with her pack.

They listened to the couple next to them speaking a language with an awful lot of gagging sounds. Jake had his phone out and knew the answer. So far, Leah and Quil had guessed German and Dutch, but struck out twice.

"One more guess or else no one gets points," Jake announced unnecessarily.

"Slovak," said Demetri smoothly coming out of nowhere with Felix in tail.

"One point to Google Maps." said Jake.

Google maps was the nickname Embry had come up with for him, but Jake had taken to calling him it to his face. It was because of his tracker ability. When asked, Demetri knew the location of every person he had ever met.

He sat beside Leah and she, on instinct, inched away, wary of the cold touch of his arm.

Ellie, a third Volturi member, also sat with them. Apparently, she was visiting family in Florence. Leah wondered when Ellie had been turned and figured it must have been recent if she still had family alive in Italy, unless they were vampires also, Ellie had chosen not to share details. Leah really hated that about vampires, their natural tendency to be secretive.

In Ellie's case, she wasn't the only one frustrated by lack of information. Carlisle had never met her before and they all wondered what her gift was, but Carlisle discouraged them from asking stating, "it would not be wise to pry in the lives of the Volturi Guard."

"How many languages do you speak?" Quil exclaimed, exasperated bringing Leah back to the moment. Every time Demetri played this game, he won.

"Only thirty," Demetri chuckled.

"Thirty!"

Demetri shrugged, "I like different languages. If I have time, I like to learn them."

"Can you all speak a million languages?" Quil demanded.

Felix snorted, "No, Dem's just weird, I know four and that's all I plan to learn."

"Six," said Ellie.

"Really?" Said Demetri sounding surprised, "which ones?"

"Urg, Italian, Spanish, Romanian, English, Turkish and German, well my German isn't too good." She mumbled it all very fast and was unable to meet the eyes of anyone at the table.

Leah frowned towards her. She had never met an unconfident vampire before. It made her uneasy.

Embry laughed at her, "You need to loosen up, Ellie. Come dance with me I'm king of relaxation. And fun."

"And laziness," said Quil.

"And womanization," said Jake punching his arm.

Embry pushed him away and everyone laughed. Ellie looked out of her mind nervous and glanced towards Felix and Demetri. Leah rolled her eyes. Her whole pack was becoming far too comfortable in the company of vampires. Soon they would all be as bad as Seth.

"Go ahead, have a blast," Said Felix waving Ellie away.

Embry took her hand and led her into the crowd of people gathered below the band.

"Don't mind Ellie she has a huge crush on Dem, gets pretty goddamn nervous when he's around."

Demetri laughed and shook his head, "Not true, she's always goddamn nervous. Aro doesn't know what to do about it."

"Is she new to the Volturi?" Leah asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. Jake shot her a warning glance and stood up. She ignored his glare. It had been a perfectly reasonable follow-up question.

"I'm going to get a drink." Jake snapped.

Felix watched him leave, but Demetri kept his eyes on Leah seeming impressed.

"Finally decided to ask about her, huh? I bet old Carlisle told you not to."

Leah stared into Demetri's eyes. They were nearly black. He must have forgot contacts._ Thirsty? _she mused. But then refocused on their conversation.

She was going to deny his claim, but there was something intense in those black eyes, somehow she knew Demetri would catch her lie only by watching her tell it. _Stupid leeches, spent hundreds of years learning how to read people. At least none of the Volturi are like Edward. Mind invasion. Stupid leech. _The next second she felt bad for insulting Edward, but the mind reading thing really did get on her nerves.

Meanwhile, Quil, sensing danger, as well, left the table to find a drink.

"I'm only curious. You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

Half of Demetri's mouth curved into a smile. "She's new." He said and he left it at that. Leah waited for more, but, instead, he asked Felix something in Italian and they both laughed and looked in her direction.

Leah realized she was frowning deeply in a frustrated manner. He had told her what she already knew.

He leaned in closer to her, "Any more questions?" He smirked his cold breathe washing over her face.

Leah knew he was only teasing her, but she could feel her temperature rising quickly with rage. Emmett always teased her and sometimes Garrett too, but she couldn't stand it when Felix or Demetri did. They didn't know her. She didn't even like them. They had no right.

Before she could say anything, a stupid hostess appeared beside their table.

"I noticed you guys didn't have any beverages? Is there anything I could interest you in?" She was pretty in a very human way. Her face was a bit plain, but she made up for that with a body which every man who walked by couldn't help, but glance at. Her smile seemed to be directed towards Demetri though she glanced Felix's way every couple of seconds. Leah doubted she had even noticed she was there.

Demetri smiled politely and gave her a quick answer in Italian. She giggled, said something, then walked away. Demetri turned back to Felix and Leah almost instantaneously, but Felix watched her walk away.

"Damn it, that one has a crush on you too. Mind if I change that, Dem?"

Demetri shrugged, "Go ahead."

Felix smirked and rose to his feet to go after the young hostess. Leah watched him leave nervously. She couldn't just let him go and feed on some innocent girl (though an incredibly idiotic innocent girl) right in front of her, but she knew it was a bad idea to get in a fight with a member of the Volturi.

Demetri watched her torn expression for a minute then said, "Don't worry, he's not looking for blood."

Leah wasn't sure if she believed him. They sat in a silence only broken by random girls who would edge closer and closer giggling before finally getting up the nerve to ask Demetri some stupid question.

_You're all idiots. Stupid humans. Stupid vampires. _

Leah found herself becoming more and more aware of human stupidity the more time she spent with vampires. Example A, Seth, who had been dancing with Tanya for nearly an hour. Leah let out a hiss of annoyance and stood up. She was done with vampires for the day. No, she was done with them for the year.

Demetri was on his feet not a second later.

"Where are you going?"

"Back to the hotel."

She started to walk away, but Demetri stepped in front of her.

"I'll accompany you."

"It's really not necessary." She said not bothering to hide her annoyance.

"I'm sorry, but it is." He looked sort of actually sorry too so she decided to let it go.

He followed her out of the bar. Leah rolled her eyes at the gaggle of dismayed girls who watched them leave.

They walked in silence. Leah wished she could think of something to say, but then decided it didn't matter since she didn't care what Demetri thought of her anyways.

Leah looked up at the lights on one of Florence's many beautiful bridges. As always, her breathe was taken away and she stopped so she could stare.

A horrible screech ripped across the peaceful night. Screams filled the air and smoke clouded Leah's vision. She turned on her heel to see a car spinning out of control down the street. It hit one, two, four, eight people as it hurdled towards her. She threw herself to the side just as Demetri grabbed hold of her arm. Their combined strength sent them both crashing into the window of a boutique store.

_ "_I think you're good now," Leah muttered pulling against Demetri's hold on her wrist, but Demetri didn't release her. In fact, he didn't react at all. He was frozen staring, black eyes wide.

Leah finally found what had caught his attention.

There was a woman laying in the street moaning in pain. Her arm had split clean from her body. Around her, a pool of blood was forming.

Leah felt Demetri breathe in and his body shuddered. He released her and faced the bleeding woman in a crouch. Leah heard a growl escape from his lips.

She leapt in front of him faster than any normal human could coming between him and the woman. He growled dangerously and grabbed her by the arm. Before he could throw her to the side, she wound her hands tightly in his hair.

"Demetri!" She shouted in his face. "Stupid leech! Don't do this, look at all the people!"

His body began to shake and he was still growling, but his eyes were darting between Leah and the woman. He looked frantic, wild and Leah pressed her forehead against his. She hoped her animal like scent would distract him enough from the woman so he could..

"Walk away," She spoke with forced composure, "or else we're both going to get in a lot of trouble."

She held his black eyes with hers ready to phase the instant he went in for the kill. She could hear the sounds of sirens. The fire department was on its way and the ambulance. If she could only hold Demetri back for a minute.

He snapped back up to full height and turned his back on Leah and the woman. He walked away so quickly Leah had to jog after him. The humans were so distracted by the accident and the carnage none of them looked their way. Demetri only slowed when they were ten blocks from the accident.

He turned and faced her. "Thank you, Leah. If you hadn't got in the way..." He shook his head sounding frustrated.

"Why haven't you eaten?" Asked Leah, folding her arms, uncomfortable with his thanks.

"Aro thought it would be a bad idea for us to feed while we were watching you guys. I mean it is your job to protect the humans. You would never trust us if we went out every night hunting them."

"We don't trust you anyways." Said Leah impassively.

"I know." He sighed. Then he groaned. "Your arm, I'm so sorry."

Leah hadn't been aware of the pain in the arm he had grabbed until he said that. Suddenly, it became nearly unbearable and she had to crouch on the ground holding it against her body. It felt like every bone was broken. In fact, she was pretty sure every bone _was _broken.

Demetri crouched down beside her. "I'm so sorry. Here."

The very last thing on the entire planet that Leah wanted to do at that moment was give Demetri her arm, but she was in no state to fight him so she let him take it in his hands. Surprisingly, his cold touch felt good and the areas he touched began to turn slightly numb. All the while, her arm was healing with its normal rapid speed.

Demetri watched its healing with interest. Only ten minutes had gone by when it was completely done.

"Does that happen for every injury?" He inquired curiously still holding her arm. His touch still felt unexplainably good.

"It's a wolf thing." Leah replied.

Just then Carlisle, Quil and Jake came running around the corner.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Leah, why don't you ever answer your goddman phone?" Jake demanded looking pissed. He then took in their disheveled appearance. "What the hell happened to you two?"

"There was a car accident," said Leah quickly standing and facing Jake, "Demetri kind of had to push me on the ground to get me out of the way. I hurt my arm, but we're fine we were on our way back to the hotel."

"I guess saving human girls from car accidents is a leechy kind of trend," Jake muttered darkly.

Leah left with Jake and Quil to go back to the hotel. She avoided meeting Demetri's burning gaze. She knew he was wondering, just like she was, why she hadn't told the real story. Leah considered it and reconsidered it. Long after she was safe in her hotel room bed she finally drew a conclusion. The only reason she had changed the story was so Jake wouldn't have, pissed off, phased and attacked Demetri for breaking her arm and almost mauling her. She had lied for Jake's sake and the wedding. And if Demetri thought it was for any reasons other than that, then he was under some sad illusions.

* * *

Thank you again for the reviews! and NONE OF THIS IS MINE ALL STEPHANIE MEYER'S


	5. Tears of an Immortal

Chapter 5

Tears of an immortal

_Leah dreamed that night of Sam. It was THE day. The day that had altered her life. The day Sam left her for her cousin, Emily. They were in Leah's back yard. It was 2 am and Leah could feel the rage, confusion, hurt all rising in her. _

_ "I'm so sorry, Leah," Sam whispered. "I didn't plan this, it just happened I wasn't expecting it. I'm sorry, but I have to do this." _

_ Leah rocked slowly back and forth. She couldn't speak because, if she spoke, she would surely cry and she loathed crying. It was as if three years suddenly didn't matter to Sam. Leah reflected on all of the time they had spent together. The motorcycle rides, the hiking trips, the tribe campfires they had attended together. She remembered the nights they spent when Sam would sneak up to her bedroom window and join her until the sun rose. _

_ She looked up at Sam's face. She saw pain, but there was no deliberation, no regret. The pain, she realized, was only a deep sorrow felt on her behalf, Sam was not suffering for the same reasons she was. In his gaze, Leah watched an amount of peace settle. She wanted to ask why. Desperately. Why was leaving her bringing him peace?But, as she opened her mouth, her pain drowned in fires of rage which claimed every part of her body; muscles, bones, organs, every cell was aflame with anger._

_ It was then she noticed someone standing behind Sam. It was a man. He would have been extraordinarily beautiful if not for the blood dripping down his chin. He was crouching, hungry, angry eyes locked on Sam. _

_ Leah knew she should warn Sam, she really should. Instead, she looked back at the creature and realized she knew him. It was Demetri of the Volturi. His gaze met hers and he looked towards Sam curiously. He smiled a half smile. Leah knew what he wanted and she nodded at him. _

_ He leapt forward with a lethal growl. Leah watched him lock his jaw into Sam's throat. She stood and she watched Sam die slowly as each gallon of blood left his body. When he was done, Demetri cast him aside and approached her with a smirk._

_ "See, some humans deserve what we do to them." He touched her face lightly, his red eyes glowing in the dark of the night, and Leah screamed._

She woke up safe in her bed. Well, as safe as you could be in Florence, Italy surrounded by a bunch of vampires. She sat upright breathing heavily. Usually, that dream ended with her watching Sam's back as he walked away. She would just stand and watch as layers of painful emotions pounded through her. Then, she would collapse to the ground and hope for death. That was how the story actually went.

She hadn't had that dream for months. Mostly, because she and Seth had a tendency to sleep as wolves. That way they could share each other's dreams and keep each other's fears at bay. Seth would make sure Sam didn't come anywhere near Leah in her sleep and, also, helped her to not dream about Harry's death. Leah kept the vampires at bay for Seth. Ever since the stand-off with the Volturi, Seth often had nightmares of their return.

Leah had once intruded on a dream of Seth's where he was single handedly trying to fight the entire Volturi Guard. Littered across the blood-stained ground were the dead bodies of her, Jake, Quil, Embry and all of the Cullens. That had been quite something. Seeing her own dead body covered from head to toe with blood.

Leah went and stood beside Seth and assured him she and everyone else was not dead. As she spoke, they all reappeared behind her and their bodies disappeared from the ground. They proceeded to annihilate the Volturi.

Leah still smirked when she remembered that, but her cocky expression disappeared when the image of her dead body intruded on her thoughts again.

She got out of bed and into the shower. The hotel shower was larger than her own at home and had a glass door. There were two shower heads which sprayed water down like a heavy rain.

She closed her eyes and let the night's dream wash away from her. She put on her usual jeans and light sweater. Today's was white and red. She made a mental note to go shopping for some new clothes. She would buy something to impress Sue for when she arrived late, that night, with Charlie.

Leah went downstairs to the hotel's restaurant. Breakfast was complimentary, to the excitement of the wolves. They ate significantly more than average humans, but Leah could feel her appetite decreasing the longer she restrained from phasing.

"You smell nice, Bellezza, not wolfy at all," Felix appeared out of thin air and sent her a wink. Leah knew Demetri stood slightly behind him, but she found she couldn't even look in the other vampire's direction.

"You still smell like a vampire. Perfectly disgusting." That wasn't true, necessarily. When Leah was a wolf, their smell repulsed her, but when she was human, she found it was a clean smell that reminded her mostly of pine trees or mint, depending on the vampire.

She risked a glance at Demetri and found his gaze focused intensely on her. Her appetite disappeared altogether.

"I'm going out," She announced. "Tell Carlisle and Jake and them."

"Shopping?" Asked Tanya appearing beside her with Kate in tow. "Could I join you?"

Leah repressed a groan. Stupid vampires and their uncanny ability to know exactly what you were thinking even if their names weren't Edward Cullen.

"Oooooh shopping, fantastic! I haven't been shopping in Florence for a hundred years." Kate jumped lightly up and down. Leah had never seen the two blond sisters look so excited.

"How was your waitress by the way, Felix?" Tanya inquired grinning, a sparkle in her eye.

Felix smirked, "Delicious."

Leah growled and shot Demetri an outraged glance.

Felix laughed, "Oh, don't worry, Lupa, I don't mean delicious like _that_."

"Felix enjoys the company of beautiful human women for more reasons than blood," Tanya smirked.

"Yah, don't worry they have just as much fun as I do. In fact, we should hang out some time, Bellezza, you look like you need a fun night."

"Oh, the single life," Kate sighed.

"Let's go quick so we can have the day!" Kate exclaimed. "Come on, Leah, Tanya let's catch a cab I love taking cabs."

Leah was still digesting the information she had just received about the personal lives of vampires and had only seconds to wrack her brain for some way to get out of this new arrangement, but found nothing.

"Take care of our wolf, Tanya!" Felix called after them.

"She's the Cullen's wolf, idiot! And don't worry we will."

"I'm not anyone's wolf," Leah snapped, hating vampires more and more as the seconds passed.

"Still, we'll meet you guys for lunch and check in. I'm sure Carlisle and her pack are going to want to check up on you guys also." Felix continued as if she hadn't spoken.

Leah turned her back on the two Volturi vampires and marched away. Momentarily, Tanya and Kate were by her side.

To be honest, it was a good thing Kate and Tanya had joined her. Leah knew next to nothing about shopping, no Italian and hadn't haggled before in her life. Kate and Tanya took her to a series of small boutiques where they managed to get her half off on nearly everything she wanted.

Of course, Kate and Tanya looked amazing in everything they put on, even though they insisted Leah looked better than them.

"I wish I were as tall as you, Leah!" Tanya sighed. "I'm barely 5'5, Kate's a little taller."

"Only 5'6!" Kate shot back.

"I'm only a couple inches taller than you guys then," said Leah thinking of her height of 5'9. She had been 5'5 up until she had begun phasing and hit a growth spurt.

Tanya and Kate sighed and stared at Leah with envy. Leah found herself legitimately annoyed. They were already inhumanly beautiful. They should have been happy with what they had, not finding the one thing that could be improved. Although, it was interesting to see that, even vampires, were not entirely satisfied with themselves.

They decided to visit one more store before lunch and were about to enter, but Tanya stopped and let out a hiss.

"Stand close to me, Leah," she muttered.

Leah moved quickly beside her, all the while, searching their surroundings for whatever had caused the drastic mood change in Tanya. She scanned the busy crowds of tourists, mostly women and girls, and felt her animal instincts rising. She sniffed the air and a foreign, but familiar scent met her nose.

Her eyes found the threat. He was shorter than she expected and one of the palest vampires she had ever laid eyes, which was only exaggerated by his pale blond hair. His bright red eyes darted between her, Kate and Tanya. His demeanor reminded Leah of Ellie, only, because he seemed to lack the typical vampire confidence.

He approached them, purposefully, at a slow, human pace.

"Hi, my name's Lucas. I'm looking for the Volturi vampires you have been traveling with. I have something urgent to report."

"How do you know who we're with?" Tanya demanded.

"I've seen it in the dreams of the humans here. I see it in hers." He tilted his head towards Leah.

"You see human dreams?" Asked Kate interestedly.

Lucas nodded a little too fast, his head going slightly blurry in the process. A heavy woman with a large pocketbook shot him a curious glance before continuing on her way.

"So you can see what any of these humans have dreamed about?" Kate asked gesturing to the crowds around them.

"Yes, and I can decipher them better than the humans themselves can. It's not of much use except for this, really. Human dreams tend to be so juvenile."

"Well, they aren't meant for any leeches to intrude on," Leah snapped glaring fiercely at Lucas.

"Leech?" Asked Lucas eyes widening in surprise. "I didn't mean any offense." He gazed at her curiously. Leah couldn't help, but suspect he was shifting through her most recent dream at that very moment. She growled warningly.

"Is there a problem?" Said a familiar voice and Demetri materialized beside her.

Leah jumped slightly, not expecting his appearance.

"Demetri! Of course not, it's good to see you again," Said Lucas his voice strained and, Leah had a feeling, Lucas's words weren't entirely honest. But, also, he was gazing at Demetri with something close to awe.

"The Volturi hopes you have found everything you want in this life." Demetri continued with the civilities.

"Yes, yes it has been great." Lucas looked extremely on edge. "However, only a few hours ago I went to visit dear Genine and I discovered an...an atrocity." He paused and looked like he expected Demetri to say something, but Demetri stayed silent, eyes watching Lucas's expression carefully. "Genine has broken the severest of all laws. I saw firsthand."

"I'll take care of it," Demetri replied instantly, eyes darkening.

"Wait, where's Felix?" Tanya interrupted

"Hunting." Said Demetri simply. "Now that your guests are going to begin arriving, we were taking our leave, but I came to meet you first, and saw the situation."

"We will help you uphold the law," Said Tanya. "You know how dangerous they can be, you would be a fool to attempt such a mission on your own."

Demetri nodded, "Tanya, come with me then. Kate, would you bring Leah back to her pack?"

"What no!?" Kate and Leah's series of retaliations got blended together so they were nearly incomprehensible.

Demetri's frown deepened, but Tanya chuckled. "Come on, Demetri, between myself, you and Kate, Leah really won't be in any danger at all. And, if the situation calls for it, she could always phase."

Demetri's intense gaze locked on Leah, "You have to listen to what I say, ok? If I tell you to run, then run."

Leah nodded compliantly even though she had absolutely no plan on listening to a word Demetri told her. Lucas looked curiously between them and Leah remembered her dream from that night. She wondered what Lucas had "deciphered" from it.

"Oh, don't be so bossy, Demetri," Kate smirked, "but, seriously, Leah, this isn't a joke."

The group set out at a brisk pace, well brisk for Leah, but she suspected it was rather slow for the rest of them. They travelled to the outskirts of the city where Tanya told Leah to get on her back so they could run out to Genine's house. Leah obliged and the group took off.

They were only running for a few seconds when they arrived at a small house, a split just like Leah's back on the reservation in Forks. The streets were nearly vacant and the neighborhood lacked Florence's usual beauty.

A woman's face appeared in the window of the house. Her eyes locked on Demetri and she let out a cry of fear. As she screamed, Demetri, Tanya and Kate knocked the front door out of its frame.

The woman leapt through the window holding something. Tanya ripped the bundle out of her arms and Leah caught only a glimpse of a small, struggling child. Meanwhile, Kate shocked the woman so she collapsed to the ground, incapacitated.

Demetri locked an arm around her head and ripped it off. But, out of the window, ran at least five small, beautiful children.

Tanya gasped. Demetri set the body of Genine on fire and the three vampires ran to collect the children.

"Get out of here, Leah!" Tanya shouted before ripping the arm off a two year old.

Disturbed, nauseous, Leah didn't argue, turned on her heel and ran. She went a good couple of miles before slowing. She took a deep breathe as she bent forward gripping her knees. She closed her eyes, but images of tiny bodies being ripped to pieces flashed in her mind and her eyes shot open again.

A smell hit her nose the instant she opened her eyes. The smell was so incredible she stood straight again, searching for its source. Slowly, very slowly, she followed the beautiful scent.

It was every good scent Leah had ever encountered. It was the pine trees in Forks as Leah ran through the forests. It was the ocean water evaporating off her skin. It was the wood burning at tribe bonfires. It was Harry, her father, holding her while he read her a book before she fell asleep.

She turned down an alley with brick buildings on both sides. At the end, she saw a small child crouched with its arms around its legs and its face buried in its arms. She stopped a good ten feet away.

The small creature looked up. It's face was...indescribable. It was the purest example of beauty and innocence Leah had ever laid eyes on. She could not tell whether it was male or female, but that didn't matter. It's wispy light brown hair danced around its picturesque face. Its eyes were wide with fear. Leah was incapable of movement, she couldn't blink or breathe. She felt strange emotions twisting within her. She had to help this child, if it were even a child, she had to help it, protect it. She took a few steps forward and crouched down in front of it, desperate to reassure it with her closeness.

The beautiful little creation held her gaze.

"They are going to hurt me," It whispered.

Leah was shaking her head. "No," she said softly, "no, you are going to be ok."

Then, something incredible happened. The beautiful creature began to cry. The tears were like crystals. They slid down her perfect face and dripped off her chin leaving a sparkling, wet line behind.

Leah's heart broke. It throbbed painfully in her chest. She couldn't bare the creature's pain. She couldn't watch something so indescribably innocent and perfect suffer. She wanted, no needed, to make it happy again. Make it not afraid, or else, she herself would surely die from sorrow.

She opened her arms. "Come on, I'll get you out of here."

The creature smiled with new hope in its teary eyes. Leah felt a bud of hope form in her own chest. She almost smiled, almost. But the creature stopped and peered over her shoulder with new, more prominent fear. Leah quickly rose to her feet and turned halfway around growling ferociously.

Demetri stood poised in a fighter's stance at the end of the alley. He growled. "Get out of the way, Leah."

Leah stared at him. Hadn't she thought of him as beautiful once? Yes, she was quite certain she use to find him attractive. Weren't all vampires attractive? Leah wasn't sure anymore. Demetri's beauty was nothing compared to the small cherub at her side. In fact, he looked absolutely monstrous with his hostile black eyes and ripped clothing revealing scars down his lower neck and onto his chest. He was a predator, a killer, and his projected victim was the immaculate child behind her. He could not get to her. He could not harm her.

The monster began to move forward. Leah tracked him carefully, calculating how close was too close, because once he crossed that line, she would phase and attack.

The vampire seemed to read her thoughts and stopped in his advance.

"Think about what you are doing, Leah. What you are protecting. It isn't what it wants you to believe it is. It's playing tricks on your mind."

Leah disregarded his words as lies. Such an angelic creature as the one she protected could not possibly concoct a falsity, but monsters like Demetri certainly could.

Demetri edged forward again. "Don't do it, Leah," He whispered as he moved, "you know you shouldn't. You could jeopardize your mother's wedding. Your pack's safety."

The mention of her her pack and mother made Leah falter. For only an instant, she lost focus, but a vampire needed less than an instant. Demetri launched himself forward and slammed Leah into the ground. Her head hit the pavement hard and she tried to phase, but the impact left her disoriented to the point where she couldn't, especially, not with Demetri on top of her pressing her so hard into the pavement she was sure her entire spine was going to break. His hands were on her shoulders and his knees pressed into the insides of her thighs so that her legs were contorted painfully outward. She could not even attempt to move anything below her waist without experiencing dizzying pain.

She heard two vampires land on the hard ground behind her and she realized they must have jumped from the tops of the buildings. She heard her angelic creature scream.

Leah's scream mixed with the immortal child's and she twisted under Demetri's grip. Tears streamed down the sides of her face. She clawed, bit and kicked, but to no avail. She begged and sobbed, but that heeded no results as well.

She managed to bend her neck back in an uncomfortable position to watch Tanya and Kate tear the beautiful child to pieces. The next second, its pieces were ablaze. Leah screamed bloody murder until her throat cracked and she tasted blood in her mouth. Demetri released her slowly.

Leah jerked her body onto its side breathing heavily. There were spots in her vision and a dull pain throbbed with her heartbeat. She stared into the flames watching it consume, watching it destroy.

She buried her face into her arm and began to sob. She became aware of the blood on the back of her shoulders and in her mouth. She lifted herself onto her hands and knees and spit it out. Her entire body shook with the effort and she couldn't quite regain control of her muscles. She slumped forward and focused on moderating her convulsive sobs. It didn't work, even though Leah wasn't sure what she was crying about anymore.

She heard the vampires murmuring in the background, but couldn't muster the effort to try and decipher their words.

She felt a soft cloak wrap around her body. A strong arm gripped around her stomach and pulled her up so her arms could slip into the sleeves. Her legs still hurt too bad to stand on and she fell into his chest. He caught her effortlessly and swung her up into his arms as if the whole thing were a practiced routine.

Leah buried her face in his neck and cried softly while he began to run. The speed and movement proved comforting and her sobs abated into silent tears. In this way, he brought her all the way back to her hotel room. All the while, Leah kept her eyes buried in his cold skin. She didn't want to see the Cullens or her pack or any strangers. She wasn't ready to answer their questions.

Leah wasn't sure how, but Demetri found a way into her hotel room without a key or so much as a word to her. He laid her on the bed in his gray, Volturi guard robe which was surprisingly soft and warm.

"I'll go and get Carlisle so he can make sure you're alright," Demetri said softly leaning close to her so she could hear him.

"No, wait!" Her voice was scratchy and it hurt to speak, but she forged on. "What happened? You can't just leave. I need you to tell me...I'm so confused." She was sitting up with wide eyes staring him down. She knew she must look weak and probably pretty pathetic, but that would have been an accurate appearance considering she felt both weak and pathetic.

Demetri seemed to debate with himself for a moment, but his eyes softened and he sat gingerly on the bed beside her.

"There were six immortal children. The most I've ever seen under the care of one creator. Tanya, Kate and I tried to get them all, but one slipped by us." He paused. "I'm sorry, Leah I shouldn't have allowed you to come. Immortal children are irresistible, enticing. They evoke parental protective instincts and affection without speaking, especially in females. It is extremely difficult to resist your instinct to protect them. It's their special gift, their form of self-protection. I can destroy them because I have dealt with many in the past and I'm use to their effect to the point that I have hardly any desire to protect them at all anymore. Tanya and Kate have also had experiences with immortal children in the past." He shook his head slowly at her. "It was my fault I should have remembered what kind of affect they can have on people who have never encountered them before. It was a careless mistake and I apologize."

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have defended it, I should have realized-" Leah started frustration rising in her chest.

"No, Leah," He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him, "It is not your fault, here me? Not your fault. That is how everyone and anyone would have reacted. It has nothing to do with being strong or weak, stupid or smart. That's their gift, you had as little power to defend yourself from them as you do to prevent Edward from reading your mind."

Leah had the strange urge to climb into his lap and cry there. She wished he were close enough so she could lay her head on his shoulder and press her face into the skin of his neck again.

"You should rest now. And try not to think about it anymore." Demetri spoke as he climbed to his feet.

"Wait, could you just call Carlisle maybe?" Leah wondered if he interpreted in this her hidden plea for him to stay with her.

He nodded and pulled out his cell phone. He stayed in her room until Carlisle's arrival and, then, only for a few moments to give an explanation. Leah noticed he stayed out of physical reach and, for some reason, when he left, she felt the loss in the pit of her stomach.

* * *

Thank you so much everyone for the reviews and MERRY CHRISTMAS! :) btw sorry this chapter was wayyy longer than I intended, but I loved it so much I didn't want to break it up. Oh...and it's all stephanie Meyer's


	6. Stories and Sculptures

Chapter 6

Sculptures and Stories

Leah had showered, slept, showered again and slept some more by the time Sue came barging into her hotel room at 5am the next day.

"Leah, my baby! Oh, I heard you were hurt!" She ran and embraced Leah then pulled back and examined her closely, looking her up and down. "Thank the gods for that healing thing you do," she sighed. Sue hugged her daughter again and kissed her forehead.

"I had planned to go out today, but I understand if you don't feel up to it. We can just watch movies and abuse the hotel service."

Leah laughed, "No, mom, it would be fun to go out. I got a new outfit, I think you'll like."

Leah dressed quickly in her new dress, cardigan and boots she had bought with Tanya and Kate before...everything. She shuddered, but, quickly, repressed the unpleasant memories. She didn't want to dwell on them any longer.

Sue was beyond delighted when she saw Leah in her dress.

"Oh my goodness, my daughter still has a figure! Who knew?" She teased.

Leah knew it had upset her that all Leah would wear were t-shirts and jeans or sweatpants. Sue had always been one to dress well and make sure her family followed suit. She always hunted down the best bargains even though they rarely had much money to spend on nice clothing.

Leah and Sue talked idly as they made their way down to the lobby. Leah did her best to keep smiling and not allow Sue to see how shaken she still was. Leah had barely glanced around the lobby before her eyes locked on a face that made her stomach flip over.

Demetri greeted her with obvious hesitation, "Hi, feeling better, I hope?"

Leah nodded stiffly, not sure how to answer him. Her mouth felt unusually dry. She watched him graciously introduce himself to Sue before asking for a moment with Leah. Sue smiled graciously back and nodded. She walked over to stand with Jake, Quil, Embry and Seth who were all eying Demetri with hostility.

"I just thought I would let you know I'm returning to Volterra today. Aro has a new mission for me now that Felix and I have concluded that you are all trustworthy. I wish your pack and family the best, especially your mother and her soon to be husband."

"Well, thanks, I suppose," Leah muttered irked by Demetri's whole statement. Demetri's face flickered bewilderment at her harsh reply. She knew she wasn't being fair. She swallowed her pride.

"Sorry, that was rude. I'm glad you decided we're trustworthy and, thank you, I'll be sure to tell my mother that." The words felt forced and awkward. She realized she had kept her eyes averted the entire conversation and she quickly flickered her gaze to meet his. His eyes were a light brown. Contacts. She wondered if they were black or red underneath.

"I wish you the best too, Leah. And thank you for that night when you didn't tell about how I nearly lost control. That meant a lot to me." He smiled a little bit at the end. The smile reached his eyes, assuring Leah it was a genuine gesture.

"It was nothing. I should really be the one thanking you, but it's okay, we can just consider things even. Good luck on your new mission." She smiled a little more easily at the end and held his eyes with hers.

He looked briefly troubled and it seemed as though he had something he wanted to say, but he only looked her up and down once, so quickly, she wasn't even sure if it had actually happened. Then, with a final nod, he turned and left the hotel. Leah realized she must have been the last person he said goodbye to. She wondered why he had waited around for her.

"Volturi?" Sue asked as Leah approached the group. Leah always forgot how much Sue knew.

"Yeah, Leah's best buds with the Volturi vamps now, huh?" Said Jake laughing, but Leah could hear the aggression in his voice when he spoke.

Leah smiled and gave a quick, unconvincing laugh.

For this shopping trip, everyone, including the remaining Cullens, plus, Tanya, Kate, Garret, her pack and Charlie, joined. They succeeded in making a scene in every store they walked into.

Leah couldn't help, but laugh at the humans' expressions. She knew how they must look. Five overgrown American Indian kids who had a tendency to shout and break things accompanied by five strangely pale and strangely beautiful people who had a tendency to appear out of nowhere and disappear just as fast. Meanwhile, Sue and Charlie, the only two of normal appearance, seemed perfectly at ease with the whole situation.

It took approximately 30 seconds to a minute for their party to clear out a whole store, but the store workers didn't care. The vampires, Tanya and Kate especially, threw money around like nothing Leah had ever seen before. Additionally, Sue was spending more money on clothing than she use to in a year. In one store particularly, Leah was certain between Tanya, Kate and Sue the women's section would soon be entirely sold out.

Desperate to escape the madness, Leah ducked out of the store and rushed across the plaza. She took a deep breath, sat on a bench and observed the statues lining the plaza. The crowds flowing around her put her strangely at ease. She studied the statue directly in front of her appreciatively. It was one of the many depictions of a Roman god. Leah frowned. The statue was oddly familiar even though she was quite certain she had never met any Roman gods.

"Yes, we vampires do like to flatter ourselves sometimes," said Carlisle appearing beside Leah.

"What?" She asked having truly no idea what Carlisle meant.

He gestured towards the statue. "Artists like Donatello and Michelangelo were obsessed with human, perfection, I suppose you could call it, and they often used vampires as their models when sculpting or painting. Of course, they had no idea, they just thought they had found unique human beings. Anyways, it was quite the trend for our kind to pose for them." He peered at the statue's face more closely. "I would say this one looks a great deal like Demetri, don't you think?"

If it were anyone other than Carlisle, Leah would have called him out for bullshit, but Carlisle turned curiously towards her with his usual clear, honest expression. She stood up and walked closer to get a better look. The statue was so obviously Demetri she felt like an idiot for not realizing earlier.

"Donatello?," she said lamely, clearing her throat.

Carlisle nodded, "Yes, 1400s, I believe, he's quite a bit older than I. Most of the Volturi are. Demetri was created in 1100, I believe. By my friend, Amun, who you met last year actually." The name was vaguely familiar to Leah, but she couldn't match it with a face.

"Amun has a certain talent for finding humans in his home country of Egypt with unique abilities. Demetri is, in his opinion, one of his greatest accomplishments. Of course, Benjamin has probably taken the crown now, I would say."

Leah could feel her own curiosity taking flame and she reluctantly probed Carlisle for more information. "So how does he find people like Demetri and Benjamin? Can they do these things as humans?"

"He's kept Benjamin's story very secretive, but I know he found Demetri through his big jewel pursuit of the middle ages. He often hired humans to steal jewels or carry out deals with those he would rather not meet face to face himself. Sometimes, he sent them as bribery to other powerful vampire covens. He would find humans who were, excuse me, more appetizing, and send them into a coven under the illusion they were performing a jewel heist. He had talent for finding humans and other vampires paid him in gold, silver and precious metals to feast on them. You see, vampires were not allowed to eat other vampire's humans without their permission."

_Typical leeches_, Leah reflected coldly. _Permission to eat other vampire's humans._

"Demetri, as a human, gained fame as a petty thief. They said he had never been caught, not once. He did, however, catch the attention of a vampire in Amun's coven and that vampire brought Demetri to Amun. Amun originally planned on using him as a thief to pry on the rich humans of the day, but his human scent was incredible. It was comparable only to singers. It's a wonder he had survived that long. In fact, I'm pretty sure Amun had to fight a couple of them off so they wouldn't kill him then.

Amun was excited about what reward such a delicious human could earn him. He sent Demetri, like he had done to so many before him, under the impression he was performing a heist. Amun awaited the arrival of the other vampire coven with the gifts they would surely bear as recompense for Demetri.

To Amun's shock, Demetri himself returned, and not alone. He had stolen ten thousand worth in diamonds without being caught by the vampires of the coven. Such a feat was unheard of. Amun asked him how he had managed the thievery. Demetri told him that, ever since he was young, he always knew where to find jewels. He found them in the first place he looked, every time. Furthermore, he could sense, in the back of his mind, when any person was near him and could even estimate their distance. He told Amun that was how he never got caught.

Amun tested his abilities. He found all of Demetri's claims to be true. Additionally, Demetri was extraordinarily more coordinated than any human he had ever encountered. Amun could hardly believe the prize he had stumbled upon. He changed Demetri only a couple of months later. They worked on his tracking ability for a number of years and, well, you have seen the result. There's no other tracker like Demetri. It's baffling really."

"Did Amun tell Demetri he was going to change him? Do people choose to be changed, I mean?" Asked Leah frowning. For some reason, Demetri's story had unnerved her.

"No, Amun doesn't believe in choice. He believes in destiny, as he calls it. he thinks humans like Demetri and Benjamin were fated to become vampires."

Leah stared up at the stone face of Demetri. Her stomach was twisting uncomfortably. _So it happens just like that. One moment your human, young, alive and, the next, some leech like Amun is biting your neck off turning you into some creature you never even knew existed. _She shuddered.

"That's quite the philosophy your _friend_ has, Carlisle."

Carlisle looked deeply concerned as he met her eyes. "Amun has his flaws, like all of us."

Leah wished she could argue, but she was far too deeply flawed a person herself to challenge Carlisle Cullen's words.

* * *

Disclaimer: NOT mine all Stephanie Meyer's

Thank you for the reviews they are awesome encouragement!


	7. Showtime

Chapter 7

Showtime

Leah did her best to spend the following days not thinking about immortal children or vampires of any kind. But, of course, the harder she tried not to think about the vampires, the more she did. Well, it was one vampire in particular.

Leah found herself spending hours at a time dwelling on Demetri. She replayed his story over and over in her head. She could hear Carlisle's words and she struggled to match images with the story. Then, she would think about the incident with the immortal child. Demetri slamming her into the concrete with force enough that her spine cracked, but then carrying her so gently back to her hotel. Leah couldn't help, but wonder what Demetri thought about everything that happened. He had seemed genuinely grateful for that time she covered for him which led her to believe he must like her to some extent. Not that she cared if he liked her. She certainly still didn't like him. Sure, it had been nice of him to carry her back, but he was the one who had injured her so badly in the first place. Thoughts like this would go on and on in Leah's head.

In good news, Leah wouldn't have to return to Forks until after the wedding. She enjoyed escaping from the rainy, depressing place. She liked not having to see Sam every day of her goddamn life laughing away with Emily, wiping frosting off her nose and that kind of cutesy crap.

She also didn't have to see memories of Harry at every corner. In Forks, especially on the reservation, Leah saw him everywhere she went. He was in the drug store, at the super market, standing outside their house. By the hospital, that was the worst. Leah would only need to glance at the hospital before Harry's cold, lifeless face flashed in her vision. Harry dead. Dead Harry. It still tore her apart to think about. Sometimes, she didn't even believe it. Even more incredible than him being dead was how he actually died. Leah couldn't even go there. Not yet. That was a dark, ugly part of her mind that she hoped she would never have to look into again.

Felix and Demetri had been gone a week when the Volturi decided to come calling again. Aro phoned Carlisle and requested a meeting with Jake, Leah and the rest of the pack. Once again, Leah found herself packing her stuff for Volterra. Carlisle and Emmett insisted on accompanying them. Jake and Quil were particularly annoyed by the whole situation. They were supposed to leave that day back to Forks, but now they were on their way to talk with a bunch of vampires. Leah knew the distance between them and their imprintees was becoming painful. They didn't have to phase for Leah to know exactly what was going on in their heads. For Jake, it would be Renesmee haunting him and, for Quil, it was Claire. Leah wondered how much longer they would be able to stand being away. She herself had not imprinted, thankfully, but she had seen how intense it was through Jake and Quil.

Leah considered the idea of imprinting as the group made their way to the train station. It could be a good thing for her she supposed. It would ensure she would never hurt over Sam again, but she didn't like the kind of reliance Jake and Quil had on their loves. Suddenly, you depended on this person, really depended on this person. They were your life, no, they were life itself. You had to be everything that person wanted or needed. Imprinting took away choice. Leah knew that only too well.

Carlisle had timed their arrival at the train station perfectly. They waited hardly a minute before a black train announced its arrival with a loud screech.

Leah stood up to board. Just then a gust of wind blew in her face. It brought a strange scent with it. It was like nothing Leah had ever smelled before and, yet, she felt she had known it forever. She looked wildly around for its source, but the train rolled across blocking her vision. She ran into the cart and to the other side. Pressing her face against the window and breathing in deeply, Leah searched desperately for anything to explain the scent. The train jolted to a start and, just as it was gaining momentum, Leah caught a glimpse of something.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Jake demanded.

"Didn't you see it?" Leah asked, a strange elation rising in her stomach.

"See what?" Jake was looking at her as if she had just grown two extra heads.

"The wolf! It was on the platform on the other side of the train!"

Now Jake was looking at her is if she had no heads. "Are you feeling alright, Clearwater?"

"I have never encountered a wolf in Italy before," Carlisle added frowning towards Leah, "besides yourselves."

She let out a growl of annoyance, "Seth, Quil, Embry, one of you saw it, right? Or smelled it?"

They looked between each other and then back at her with concern. "I might have smelled _something,"_ Embry offered hesitantly. Emmett chortled and murmured something to a bewildered looking Seth that made Seth relax and laugh.

Leah took to glaring out the window. She was certain she had seen a wolf on that platform, a large strangely scented wolf.

This time, they didn't wait around. Carlisle led them through the narrow streets of Volterra right up to the fake sewer grate. One by one they descended into the dimly lit corridor below.

They entered the room with the human woman. She stood and offered to help them with a huge, stupid grin. Leah couldn't bear to look or listen to her so she focused on the back of Carlisle's sparkling, blond hair as he conversed with the woman. She brought them to an elevator where they all boarded and descended another couple of floors.

Leah felt her muscles tense as the elevator jerked to a stop. The smell of vampire nearly intoxicated her senses. Carlisle and Emmett led them into a room surprisingly warm and lit brightly by a number of lamps. Candles gave off sugary scents and the set up of armchairs and couches looked rather comfy. But Leah hardly noticed the pleasantries of the room. Her eyes were drawn to the ten vampires gathered around a coffee table, occupying the comfortable couches.

Instantly, Leah recognized Aro, Marcus, Caius, Felix, Demetri and Ellie. She studied the other four and realized the two smallest of them to be Alec and Jane, the devil twins. The boy, Alec could paralyze with some sort of weird mist and the girl, Jane, could torture any person causing them incredible pain. Leah remembered discussing their abilities with the Cullens last year in preparation to fight them. The last two, hulking guards of Felix-ish size, she could only vaguely recall into memory.

Aro stood looking, if it were possible, even more delighted than the last time she had seen him. "Look who has arrived! Just in time, also. Demetri has gathered some information I think you would all be very interested in." He smiled and gestured towards the last couple of couches.

Leah couldn't help, but stare at him and wonder if he were thoroughly insane. She had not come all the way to Volterra, again, to sit around and chat with a bunch of bloodsucking vampires. But, along with everyone else, she followed Carlisle's lead and sat on the couch between Embry and Emmett.

She looked quickly around and was surprised to find nearly every set of eyes focused on her, including all three pairs of the Volturi leaders'. She set her face into a determinedly blank expression.

"Demetri, if you would," said Aro.

Demetri swiftly rose to his feet. His eyes met Leah's for an instant. They were red. Blood red. Leah blushed slightly remembering the last time she had seen him.

"I spoke with you, Carlisle, before I left about the intent of my mission."

Carlisle nodded, "I remember."

Demetri turned to the pack and Emmett, "I left last week because we received word about Joham, you are familiar with his story, I believe?"

Leah vaguely remembered, but Jake let out an impatient sound.

"The crazy scientist vampire who makes others like Renesmee. Thinks he's creating some super race. Yeah, we remember him," said Jake dully, but Leah could hear the pain in his voice when he spoke Renesmee's name.

"We got a tip off he was up in Russia. I found him out past St. Petersburg far in the North. He had two of his creations with him. I have reason to believe that one of them is very new; it appeared hardly ten years old. As for the remaining, two I don't know the location of and Huilen remains in South Africa. Also, Joham had another vampire with him. The vampire appeared extremely submissive and, I believe, Joham is training him as a sort of protege."

"Now that you have seen Joham for yourself, my friend, what course of action do you believe we should take?" Aro inquired.

Leah was willing to bet every dollar she had ever owned this "course of action" Demetri would propose had already been discussed between him and Aro. Heck, maybe it had already been discussed among the entire Volturi. This was a show. Only a show, for the entertainment of her pack and the Cullens.

"We need to speak with Joham, of course, and ask of him why he did not consult us before he began this experimentation. And, if my suspicions are correct, he can not be allowed to train others to follow in his example. We'll have an epidemic on our hands. Also, I, myself, am rather curious as to what purpose this 'supreme race' is meant to serve."

"As we all are, I'm sure," Aro agreed, nodding. He turned to Carlisle, "We wished to consult with you before forging our next course of action. You are all better acquainted with this species Joham has created. In fact, more than your consultation, we request your assistance. We believe Joham would be more disposed to speak with us peacefully if we were to go to him together. It is not our desire to destroy his family, but we fear his hostility as suggested by his attempts to keep his experiments a secret. Would you consider this proposition?"

Leah narrowed her eyes at the leader of the Volturi. She highly doubted their presence would effect the Volturi's actions at all. Doubtlessly, Aro had already decided Joham's fate. So why ask for their help? Leah puzzled over the Volturi's request while the others considered Aro's words.

"I speak for myself when I say I will take your proposal under consideration," said Carlisle carefully.

"Excellent, excellent I am delighted to hear it. And what say you, Jacob Black, alpha of the wolves?"

"I don't understand why you need our help if Doctor Cull can go with you." Said Jake.

Aro frowned, "We thought, when dealing with multiple species of the supernatural, we should enlist in the help of all other supernatural beings. The Volturi govern the world of the vampires, but these creatures are not vampires. I, for one, don't believe we have the right to, alone, decide their fate."

Leah translated his words to meaning "we don't want any shit for sticking our noses in places we shouldn't but we figure if we add some Cullens and some shape-shifters no one will bother us." The Volturi were clever about how they presented things, very clever, she would gave them that.

Jake, frowning deeply, rubbed his forehead while he spoke. "We will consider it. Tonight, meet us up on the street and we'll talk again." He rose to his feet. Leah, Seth, Quil and Embry rose in unison not a second after.

"You have not been excused," said little Jane fixing them with a cold stare.

"We don't need permission to exit a room," Leah retorted.

Every shape-shifter and vampire in the room tensed. Demetri, somehow, disappeared and reappeared beside her, arm, outstretched in front of her protectively. Before Jane could lash out, Aro put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay, pretty one, they are young and know no better. You are free to take your leave." He raised his hands, palms up, and the rest of the Volturi stood. The doors were thrown open and there was chatter as people exited.

"What did you do that for?" Leah demanded under her breath at Demetri.

"I don't know what you're talking about it," He said his face the perfect display of confusion.

"I don't need you jumping in between me and Jane."

"I was merely preventing a bloodbath," Demetri stated calmly.

Leah snorted, "Why? I bet you would have loved that. Oh, and thanks for the show." She turned on her heel, and, refusing to look back towards him, strode out of the room.

Their short conversation rang in her head. As her anger abated, she felt worse and worse for her words. He had no right to come between her and her fight, but, it was true, if Jane had attacked Leah her pack would have jumped to her defense. It would have turned into a slaughter. Not in her favor. Of course, he had set himself up for such a retort when he used the word "bloodbath."

_Watch the vocabulary next time, leech. _

Leah decided not to dwell on it any longer. It didn't matter really. Why should she care if she insulted a member of the Volturi? _Because he carried you back to that hotel and comforted you when he had no obligation to. _Leah gritted her teeth, unable to shake the conversation or her guilt.

* * *

Hey everyone so sorry I haven't updated in forever! My computer's hard drive self destructed and I lost everything for awhile, but LUCKILY i got it all back.

And to answer Florreke's question that wasn't entirely Demetri's real story he was from Greece not Egypt, but he was changed by Amun and became a part of the Egyptian coven for awhile

Thank you for the reviews!


	8. Stay Close to Leah Clearwater

**Demetri POV**

Demetri paced his room in the Volturi coven's home. Her words resounded in his head. _I bet you would have loved that, I bet you would have loved that, I bet you would have loved that._

He was not a mindless monster. He didn't revel in fights and gore. But, apparently, Leah Clearwater thought he did.

He had never met anyone, especially a woman, who disliked him so greatly. Certainly, many hated him for his gift, but that was different. They hated him because of an ability he possessed. An ability that rendered them helpless. Of course, many hated him, it was a logical response in those who had reason to fear him or the Volturi.

But Leah's hate wasn't impassioned by that alone, maybe it was partly responsible for her avid aversion to him, but he couldn't be sure. Sometimes, he allowed himself to entertain the idea that maybe Leah didn't hate him as much as he imagined. He had received a few genuine smiles from her. He had never given her any reason to hate him. He always tried to be polite, respect her even though she was so incredibly new to this world. She was young, so young and so naive.

Demetri wished he could warn her about the erratic and perilous world she had become a part of, a world that would constantly endanger her life. No, not warn her. He wanted to protect her. That was why he had picked up the habit of locating her in her his mind. Ever since the incident with Lucas and the immortal child, it had become worse. He was glad she wasn't allowed to phase because, when she did, she would disappear from his radar and he would be unable to come to her aid if she needed it.

Not that he was doing a great job protecting her anyway. Not when he himself was her greatest threat. Well, not him, more Aro, but Aro was leader of the Volturi and Demetri was a crucial cog in the Volturi machine.

Demetri knew bits and pieces of Aro's plan for the wolves, Leah in particular. He didn't know why it was Leah in particular. She certainly hated them the most of all the wolves. It had something to do with something Ellie had seen, Demetri deducted that much.

Ellie, the infamous, unreliable, incompetent. But she was the closest thing to Alice, Aro had ever found. But Ellie's abilities were weak and extremely limited. Demetri wished Aro would just let the poor girl go. All she could succeed in doing was making a real disaster of things.

But Aro claimed Ellie had, finally, provided him with something useful. Demetri knew it had to do with getting the shape-shifters on their side. Guard dogs. Aro was obsessed with the idea.

Demetri, on the other hand, loathed it. He loathed using the shape-shifter's naivety against them. He loathed having them, being so very young, put their lives in peril. He loathed the lies and the manipulation. This wasn't the Volturi, contrary to many, newer 20th century vampires' beliefs. The Volturi were there to maintain peace, not enslave other supernatural beings. He feared for the future of the Volturi, the vampires and the wolves.

Especially, he feared for Leah. Leah had the determination and stubbornness that only humans could possess, but, also, she was smart. She had kept him from attacking that woman by blocking the human's scent with her own. She chose her allies wisely. She trusted Carlisle and the Cullens, but no other vampires. She certainly did not trust him. She had seen the "meeting" of the Volturi for what it really was. The whole thing had been staged, but she wasn't fooled.

Yes, she was smart. So maybe it was smart of her to hate him? Which she definitely did. _I bet you would have loved that. _

Rage surged through his body. He punched a wall making a clean two foot deep hole into the concrete. He was not a monster. Hadn't he cared for her after everything with the immortal? Hadn't he felt pain in his own unbeating heart for the injuries she had suffered?

He looked up at his own reflection glaring at him. His eyes were still bright red from feeding some hours earlier. Demetri wondered if his eyes had only reinforced Leah's conviction of his monstrous nature.

"Hey, Dem, were going up to meet the wolfies." Felix announced as he strode into the room. His expression quickly changed to shock when he took in the destroyed wall. He recovered and let out a low whistle. "Renovating?"

Demetri very rarely lost control of his temper, or anything else. He had had hundreds of years to learn self control. But, only in these few weeks, he had lost himself twice. First, when he nearly attacked that woman after going too long without eating. And, now, when he allowed an emotion to transform into an unnecessary physical action.

Without answering, Demetri led the way from the room. The two travelled silently towards the street above. Demetri could hear their heartbeats from the lobby. The wolves had stronger, faster heartbeats than normal humans. Leah's was the fastest and quietest.

Demetri leapt up into the open Volterra air. Felix followed immediately behind him.

His eyes swept quickly over the wolves, then Carlisle and Emmett Cullen. In addition, Tanya had joined the group. He took in their scents. Tanya's was the most familiar, he had known her for ages. Carlisle and Emmett's also were no surprise to his senses. The wolves were a new scent. There animal smell had faded the longer they refrained from phasing, but it was still eminent. Jake held onto the most wolf scent and Leah the least.

Last, he tasted the tenure of their minds. Each mind had a distinctly different feel. Sometimes, minds were different colors. The wolves' minds were red. Sometimes, even when they were human, they were hard to locate. Their texture was fuzzier then vampires' or humans'.

It took Demetri less than a fourth of a second to note the group's appearance, scent and mind taste. To a human, it would have seemed as though he hardly glanced their way.

Leah refused to look at him. Demetri didn't like when she did that because he struggled to read her emotions without eye contact. He tried, in vain, to catch her eye for a couple of second before, reluctantly, moving his gaze to Jacob.

"Aro thanks you for your time considering his proposal no matter what your verdict may be." Said Demetri, smoothly, careful to keep his voice clear of any emotion.

Jake exchanged a quick look with Carlisle before speaking. "Yah, we considered it. We agree it shouldn't be the right of the Volturi alone to decide the future for the half-vampires Joham has created. From our knowledge, they have done nothing wrong and, since they have a heartbeat and are alive, we have a duty to protect them. So, yah members of my pack will accompany you, but it isn't to be your guard dogs, so don't let Aro think that. We are going to ensure that the other members of Ness-Renesmee's species are treated fairly."

"I am going to tag along, as well." said Tanya, "Supporting the whole 'fair trial' thing and all. Aro won't have a problem with that, I hope?"

"No, that shouldn't be an issue," said Demetri even though he knew Aro wasn't going to like this. With Tanya, the Volturi guards present, he and Felix, would be outnumbered. If it came to a disagreement, the situation could turn dangerous.

"Embry, Seth and I are going, Carlisle and Emmett too," said Leah, "Jake and Quil will be returning to Forks. When do we leave?"

Her heart rate increased slightly as she spoke. She still refused to look in his eyes and Demetri struggled to hide his frustration. "Tomorrow morning, 5am. We can meet here."

He noted her smooth, ebony skin which looked as though it had never known a scratch or bruise. Skin, that was so warm it was nearly painful to touch. She was entirely healed from her prior injuries. Well, on the outside she was healed. Demetri could only hope she had recovered mentally. Not that her mental state really mattered.

A bitterness crept up in his throat. It would serve Aro's purposes better if she were still shaken. Demetri would leave her to deal with her own mind. She had made it clear she didn't want his help, anyway.

Demetri and Felix left with quick, parting words. In all, it went well. Demetri was surprised Jake wasn't coming, but knew better than to inquire on it. He and Felix returned to Aro to report the conversation.

Aro was delighted by the news. However, Demetri had been right to guess he wasn't pleased by the addition of Tanya.

"Oh well, I suppose it could have been far worse. I can trust two of my most successful guardsmen to complete the task as I order?"

"Of course, Master." They replied in unison.

"Good, good, Felix, you're excused. Demetri, a quick word?"

Demetri gazed at Aro curiously. Aro had a tendency to treat Felix and Demetri as one unit, especially, when they took missions together. He rarely asked one to leave so he could speak to the other in secrecy.

Aro smiled in a confident, reassuring manner. "Stay close to Leah Clearwater, ok?"

Demetri considered explaining to Aro that, despite everything, Leah hated him just as much as any other Volturi member, maybe more, but he knew it was no use arguing. He nodded at Aro.

Aro sat back in his chair looking content, "That's all, you may leave."

* * *

Oh my goodness I am sorry I have been neglecting the story big time i've been so busy I'll try to update more frequently.

Thank you for the reviews! :)

(BTW let me know if you want different font for next time I do a Demetri POV)


	9. Egypt

Chapter 9

Egypt

Leah watched Demetri pace back and forth across the airport floor. She knew he was focusing all of his attention on the map in his head, watching Joham's mind move across the earth. The group had travelled to Moscow by plane. They had been in Russia for all of five minutes before Demetri leapt to his feet looking agitated.

"They're gone," He had said with a growl. "They're on a plane headed towards the Mediterranean. Well, Joham and his two eldest children are anyways."

"Serena and Maysun," Carlisle reminded him.

Leah had a feeling Demetri didn't give a shit what their names were.

They quickly debated the idea of splitting up. Emmett, Embry, Tanya, Leah and Felix were in favor. They argued it would be smarter for half the group to go after Joham and his two daughters while the other half kept watch over Joham's new 'assistant' and possible child.

Demetri, Carlisle and Seth seemed to think they should stay together. Demetri argued that the mission was to reprimand Joham, he was their target. Carlisle and Seth just didn't think it was wise to break the group up.

"We don't know what this guy has up his sleeve," Seth pointed out, "what if he's got a bunch of new helpers or whatever that Demetri just didn't see."

It was a valid point, and Leah was impressed, but her group won out. They divided; Felix with Emmett, Tanya, Seth and Demetri with Leah, Carlisle and Embry. Felix's group would stay in Russia while Demetri's would board the next plane to the Mediterranean.

Leah was glad when Carlisle and Embry sat in between her and Demetri. She felt badly for her comment, but her guilt also made her mad. She shouldn't feel bad for insulting a leech. She had killed leeches before and not batted an eyelash. But she hadn't known those vampires. Never spoke to them or laughed with them or been carried across Florence by them.

Plus, it annoyed her that she was still thinking about it. Demetri had definitely moved on. She snuck a glance his way. He was resting his head back against the seat with his eyes closed. Focused on the map in his head. Leah watched the people around them wander to and fro.

"Egypt," he said calmly to Carlisle. The four of them stood and purchased tickets on the next flight to Egypt which left in one hour.

"Lucky, very lucky," Carlisle remarked.

Leah found absolutely nothing lucky about their situation and cringed upon discovering her plane seat was next to Demetri's.

She debated quickly swapping with Carlisle while they boarded, but figured that he would think it immature of her. She sat down carefully and gave Demetri a quick nod. She noticed his eyes were blue.

"New contacts?" she asked half in an attempt to be civil and half legitimately curious.

He looked surprised by her question or maybe he was just surprised she was talking to him.

"Yeah, I like the brown better though."

"Why?"

He paused before speaking, "that was the color of my eyes when I was human."

His gaze had turned intense. Leah knew he was looking at her own brown eyes. She reflected on the story Carlisle had told her about Demetri. He had been a human in Egypt. She wondered if he was thinking about that or if it had been so long it hadn't even occurred to him.

The flight attendants flocked around Demetri and Carlisle nearly the whole flight. Leah put her headphones in and blasted her music so she didn't need to listen to their annoying chatter. Somehow, she drifted off.

She woke up some hours later with her head on Demetri's shoulder. Typical. She jerked her head away from him. She thought maybe he shot her a disappointed look, but it happened so fast she wasn't sure. She looked cautiously towards Carlisle and Embry to see if they had noticed. But Carlisle was engaged in a book and Embry was out cold with his mouth hanging open.

She sat up straighter in her seat and cleared her throat. She was careful to avoid looking at Demetri again and, instead, stared out the window at the clouds for the remainder of the journey.

They landed in Cairo just as the sun began to set. Leah received a major culture shock as she walked out into the Egyptian air. She stared at the women, covered from head to toe, with scarves wrapped around their heads. Some of the men wore clothing Leah was used to, but others dressed in garb Leah had never seen before.

The streets were cluttered even more so than Florence or Seattle. Everyone meaning people, horses, carts and cars fought for space in the narrow roads. Leah and her group stayed off to the side. People shot curious glances towards Demetri and Carlisle who had cloaks drooped over their shoulders and heads to block their skin from the sunlight.

"Joham is at the outskirts of the city, on the South side," Demetri murmured to the group. "He's moving around quite a bit. I can't be sure where he's headed."

"What are our chances of finding him in this?" Carlisle asked.

"Could take a few hours," said Demetri, "but we'll get him."

Suddenly, Demetri stopped in his brisk pace. Embry walked right into his back.

"I think your friends want a word with you, Carlisle."

"Uncanny, very uncanny." A smiling, ebony skinned vampire emerged from the crowd behind them. He had a genuine smile and was very young. Leah knew that, even though he appeared young, he was a vampire of immense power. Power no one had ever seen the likes of; the ability to manipulate the elements.

"Benjamin, how have you been?" Carlisle smiled and embraced the young vampire. "Tia, it's nice to see you, as well." Benjamin's beautiful mate appeared at his side. She, too, hugged Carlisle in greeting.

"Demetri," said Benjamin nodding toward the Volturi vampire, "Leah, Embry."

Leah and Embry smiled and nodded. Leah was surprised he had remembered their names.

"Amun has taken a vacation this past month in South America. I'm sure he will be very disappointed to have missed you all."

Again, Leah was forcefully reminded of the story Carlisle had told her. She observed Demetri's expression at the mention of Amun. She wondered what he thought of the vampire that had altered the course of his life. He gave no outward reaction to Benjamin's words, but continued to look the young, Egyptian vampire up and down curiously.

"What brings you all to this part of the world?" Tia inquired her voice bordering on suspicion.

Leah realized how ridiculous of a group they must have appeared to Tia and Benjamin. Hadn't, a little over a year ago, the same group of people gathered together, with many others, prepared to kill and die? If she had been Benjamin or Tia she would have been pretty pissed off, not to mention taken aback, by the apparent comradeship between Demetri and the rest of them.

"Joham," said Carlisle after an exchanged look with Demetri.

"Ah," understanding shown in the Egyptian vampires' eyes.

"He's on the south side of Cairo," said Demetri, "perhaps you could help us find him? The city has changed drastically since I was last here."

"Of course," said Benjamin, "You tell us where to go and we'll show you the fastest way to get there."

Between the combined efforts of Benjamin and Demetri, they made it to the south side in an hour's time. At this point, Embry's stomach had began to grumble loudly. Leah was hungry also, but careful to not complain. She wanted this whole thing over with as fast as possible. The foreign atmosphere and company of so many vampires was putting her on edge.

"There's the best restaurant a couple blocks to the right," Tia offered, "Well, I have heard great things about it at least."

Embry smiled graciously, "I don't take long to eat, I promise."

None of the vampires complained about the break, but Leah could see the stress in Demetri's face. He wanted this whole thing over as badly as she did. She noticed the sun had begun to set and she hoped they wouldn't have to stay the night.

At the restaurant, she ate a good deal faster than Embry who ordered nearly half the menu. While she ate, she listened to Tia and Benjamin talk.

"I remember when your uncle use to sell fish from the river right in this spot," Said Tia smiling towards Benjamin.

"And use to always have some freshly smoked for us," Said Benjamin smiling back.

"You knew each other when you were human?" Asked Embry through a mouth full of food.

"Yes, we were best friends, actually," said Benjamin, smiling, eyes glazed over as he stared at Tia.

"Well, I was madly in love with him, but he wasn't interested."

"Not uninterested, just immature," Said Benjamin. "I never realized how much I loved her until after I had changed and, for awhile, I thought it was too late. But, after a couple years, I realized a life of eternity was worth nothing without Tia. Amun didn't think it wise, and he was probably right, but I went to find her."

"I had married a merchant," Tia continued, "but, I was unhappy. He was a cruel, old man. Even after the years, I never stopped loving Benjamin. When he came to me I could not bear the thought of losing him again."

"Even seeing what he had become?" Asked Leah, shocked.

"Yes, I saw that it was still Benjamin even though his appearance had changed."

_And diet._

"I would become anything for Benjamin," She said, so softly, staring into his eyes with such passion that Leah looked away, blushing.

"And I, would be anything for her," Said Benjamin taking Tia's hand in his own.

"It's quite remarkable you managed to change her successfully being so young, yourself, at the time." Carlisle noted, appraising the couple.

Benjamin shrugged, "My love is stronger than any desire for blood. It was then and is now. I did not find it difficult to stop knowing I endangered her life."

Leah began tapping her foot quickly. All of the love talk was stressing her out. Suddenly, the restaurant was far too warm. She needed air.

Demetri beat her to it. "Joham's on the move again," He said standing abruptly. "I'll wait outside, I don't want to lose him."

Leah sat, torn, but then stood. "I'll wait outside, too." She announced quickly, then she followed after Demetri.

She found him standing up against a wall with his arms crossed. He was grinding his teeth together and he looked, almost, like he were in pain. She stopped her approach some ten feet away. He probably didn't want to talk to her. She turned to leave him to his thoughts, but a group of rowdy, loud men turned the corner.

They saw her and let out wolf whistles. They made kissy faces her way and started speaking in a language she didn't understand. Their eyes stared, unabashed, at her chest and hips.

She bared her teeth at them, ready to defend herself, if necessary. She didn't appear it, but she was stronger than any of the men due to her greater strength as a shape-shifter.

One of the men reached to touch her hair. She spun and kicked him in the face. The force broke his nose and sent him onto his back. He groaned in pain and clutched at his face. Another one came at her with a drawn fist. She ducked and jabbed her elbow into his crotch. He whimpered and fell to his knees. Two attacked at the same time, from the left and the right. She tripped the one on the right and ducked around the other. She slammed her left arm into the back of his head and he fell over on his face.

The drunk men struggled back to their feet and limped away murmuring darkly in their language.

Laughter filled the air and Leah turned back to Demetri who was grinning at their retreating backs. He walked over and put his arm around her calling out something in their language. One of them turned around and gave him an obscene gesture.

"I'm glad I let you have that one. I didn't know you could fight like that when you were human." He realized his arm was still draped around her shoulders and dropped it.

Leah couldn't help, but smile. "Neither did they. I hope they remember that for the future."

"They will." said Demetri, confidently. "I'm never going to forget that." He sighed and leaned back up against his wall. "It's amazing, there are just some things, some situations, that are impossible to forget. I find, it's usually the bad memories that stay." He frowned into the street. The look of pain had returned.

Leah felt a stab of sympathy. "Well, that was morbid." She remarked glancing at him. "I mean, I agree with you, though." She frowned, "Those men were scum bags." Part of her wanted to hunt them down and threaten them or something. She worried about the women they would, no doubt, abuse in the future. Women who could not defend themselves.

"I use to hunt that type," said Demetri, as if he had read her thoughts, "when I was first changed. I thought it justified the whole thing."

Leah was surprised by his honesty. She was even more surprised when she found she had no cruel reply to his statement. He looked like he was in too much pain already.

"Sorry, that must have been uncomfortable for you to hear." He muttered after a moment of her silence.

She cleared her throat and began, uncertainly, "You were changed here, right? Carlisle said that, I think." She discreetly avoided his eyes, but a slight blush crept into her cheek. She felt guilty for knowing so much about him from Carlisle's story.

His eyes locked on hers. He straightened up and stepped closer to her a dark shadow falling over his face.

"Yes, I was a human here, centuries ago. What else did Carlisle tell you?"

"Just that Amun changed you because he could tell you would have gifts as a vampire," said Leah tripping over her words. Demetri hadn't looked so dangerous since the encounter with the immortal child.

He closed his eyes and fell backwards against the wall again. "I haven't been here for centuries." He paused for a minute looking around, agitated.

"My parents died here. In this city. I hardly remember them now. I started picking pockets right after their deaths. I was eleven, I think. My sister was six. We worked together. She would do flips and cart wheels. She was the cutest thing. I would rob people of everything they had on them while she acted as a distraction. I started stealing form carts then houses. It was a natural skill for me. My sister and I had a group of street kids we lived with. Life was, well, it was good. Of course, I had no idea how good it was, at the time. Amun changed me and I was enchanted by the new life before me. I was improved in every way I could imagine. Furthermore, I had a gift, as Amun and I soon discovered. Have I ever explained it to you? Really explained how it works?" He inquired.

Leah shook her head, fascinated by his story. His voice had softened and she took a step closer to him leaning against her right arm the wall for support.

"It's like I have this map of the world in my head. It's always there. When I move I automatically know what sea level I'm at, what material and elements I'm on, surrounded by, and the presence of the minds of the people I'm around. Whenever I think of someone, I automatically locate them and I note on everything about their location. I don't have to make an effort, I just know, it's a reflex, an instinct."

He paused. "The mind. Now that's something I don't know if I can explain. Everyone's mind is unique. It has its own texture, color, flavor, heat. Yours and your pack's are oddly similar. Usually minds don't resemble each other in any way. For example, there are millions of minds with bluish coloring, but each blue is different. I have billions of different shades of colors spinning in my head all the time. When I was young, it use to drive me insane."

He looked at her with a bothered expression. "I never lose track of a mind once I've come in contact with it, but your mind is...fuzzy. And I can't see it at all when you shift into a wolf."

"Alice can't see us either, or, not well. But Edward can read our thoughts."

"Interesting, I wonder if Jane could torture you." He smiled, "See, you are truly baffling to all us "leeches", Leah Clearwater. We know nothing about you. It's not a feeling we're use to."

Leah shrugged, not sure whether it was a compliment or not. It was strange hearing her full name pronounced by him.

A group of Egyptian kids ran by them. They were skinny, dirty and had no shoes. Leah tried to imagine a younger, human Demetri among them. She had a feeling Demetri was doing the same thing.

"I came back for her," his voice was soft, softer than a whisper. "Amun told me not to. He told me I was too young to turn anyone, that I wouldn't be able to control myself. But I couldn't stand being away from the only family I had. I found her where I had left her. She was so malnourished, so fragile, smoking whatever her and kids I left her with could get their hands on. To me, human life was an inferior way of living. I wanted her to be part of the incredible world I had joined. I didn't want her to suffer the limitations of mortality any longer."

Demetri stared across the street, watching the small children laugh amongst each other. "There's always risks that come with changing anyone into a vampire. First, you could lose control and give in to the taste of the blood. It's almost impossible to stop once you have begun feeding. Second, sometimes the venom doesn't coincide with the human. Often, this occurs when the human is weak in physical strength and health. I knew about the first, but not the second. I managed to stop drinking her blood when I tried to change her, but I had taken too much. She was so weak already. The venom killed her halfway through the transformation. Her heart stopped. I thought it had worked, but she didn't move. She didn't open her eyes. I wanted to give her an eternity of a better life, but, instead, I gave her death."

He looked at her and, in his eyes, Leah saw a familiar pain. And a familiar guilt. She managed to draw in air and Demetri's scent filled her lungs, but it was laced with something else, something hostile.

Demetri threw himself to the left where he collided with another vampire. The next second, they were surrounded.

Leah phased and launched herself at the closest vampire. She locked her jaw on its arm and ripped it from its body. The leech screeched like nothing Leah had ever heard before. She watched blood trickle out of the hole in its side and, at that moment, became aware of the heartbeats. They were halfies like Renesmee.

Carlisle, Benjamin and Embry ran out to join the madness. Embry phased and their minds connected. It felt good to be in her wolf form again. And even better to feel the comforting presence of Embry's mind.

_I missed this. _Embry remarked and Leah could hear the smirk in his voice. She knew he was talking about fighting vampires. He launched himself at one of the halfies' necks. Leah finished off the one without the arm and, quickly, took in the situation. With the new additions, Leah's side had gained the upper hand. Demetri fought the only actual vampire of the bunch who Leah assumed to be Joham

Two halfies attacked him at the same time. The vampire spun on his heel and fled. Carlisle, Embry and Benjamin were stuck in their own battles. Demetri struggled to throw off the halfies who were skillfully blocking his path to Joham.

Before he could escape, Leah rocketed after him. She was the fastest of the wolves. She had run track in high school. As a wolf, she liked to run in the forest. Running came naturally, easily. Leah stretched out her legs, feeling her muscles pump her forward faster than any other wolf could move. She drew in the scent of the vampire.

This was what she liked best. The hunt. That chase. The thrill. People shouted in shock and surprise as she raced through the busy streets. Many had never seen a wolf before and none had ever seen a wolf of her size. She hoped she was moving too fast for their cameras.

The leech ran out into the desert. The sand shifted under Leah's paws and she stumbled slightly in her pursuit. Defeat settled in her stomach as Joham gained ground. He was headed toward the Nile River. If he reached it, she would never catch him, the water would slow her too much.

But, she had no need to worry. The vampire, joined by two others, stopped his advance. They stood and waited for her. Leah slowed and stopped.

_Be there in 30 seconds. _Leah could see Embry making his way through the desert after her. When he was only a few paces behind her, Leah sprang towards the vampires.

She leapt into the air at Joham, jaw aimed at his head. She felt her teeth sink into his neck, but a sharp pain shot up her stomach at the same moment. She jumped away from him.

His head hung on his neck by a few inches of skin. In his hands was a large syringe coated with blood. Leah looked down at the blood on her stomach. Suddenly, weakness spread throughout her body. She collapsed into the sand, unable to move. Her body phased back into a human seemingly on its own accord. She couldn't even turn her head to take in Embry's situation.

Joham, his head flapping precariously, approached her and lifted her over his shoulder.

"Goodbye, female shape-shifter," he murmured, then, threw her into the Nile.

Leah hit the water hard. She gasped for a last breath before the current dragged her under. The raging tide pushed her downstream. Her body was thrown above and below the water. She couldn't tell which direction was up or down. She attempted to draw breath when she could, but water was forcing its way up her nose and down her throat.

Leah began to see stars. She couldn't believe she was going to die drowning. She had always imagined it would be in battle against a leech defending the people she loved. She didn't want to die like this. Helpless.

Something sharp sank into her arm. It felt like teeth. Next thing she knew, she was being dragged out of the river and onto the sand. She coughed ferociously, while blinking rapidly, trying to see who it was that had saved her. She saw it only briefly, for hardly a couple seconds, but, this time, she was entirely certain. It was a wolf. A huge, shaggy, gray wolf. The same one from the bus station. The next moment, gone.

Leah laid, alone. The wolf had fled. She wiggled her fingers and a prickling feeling began spreading down her fingers into her hands then arms. She managed to sit up just as a shout reached her ears.

"Leah! Leah, what happened?" Demetri materialized by her side on his knees. She blinked, still trying to regain her bearings. She realized she was totally naked. Demetri seemed to realize the same thing at that same moment. He looked away and pulled off his cloak handing it to her. Leah thanked every god ever known to the human race that the night was dark.

She pulled the cloak around her tightly. "I don't know," her voice shook more than she had expected. "They injected us with some sort of stuff, I think. They had a syringe." She touched her stomach where the cut had long healed and disappeared.

"Embry's passed out," said Demetri. "We found him on the river bank. Joham and his children are gone."

"Where are they headed?" Asked Leah as she attempted to climb to her feet. Demetri pulled her up while answering.

"Airport. Back to Russia is my guess."

"We have to go then! We need to catch them before they get on an airplane again!" Leah exclaimed strength returning to her muscles with each passing second. "Here, I'll phase and we can catch them." She focused on the transformation, but nothing happened. She stood, face scrunched up in concentration, but she couldn't, just simply couldn't. Panic set in.

"I can't phase," she gasped.

"That's probably a result of the medicine," said Demetri clearly just as baffled as her.

Leah struggled to refocus. Her own wolf issues could wait. Joham had hurt her and her pack. She thought of Embry, unconscious. Now, it was personal, and she would indefinitely help hunt Joham and bring him to justice.

_Mabye the Volturi do serve a legitimate purpose._

Out loud she said, "We still have to go after him. We can't let him escape."

"You need clothes," Demetri pointed out. "First."

Leah hissed in frustration. "Ok, go get me some clothes then!"

Demetri turned and disappeared into the night. Leah walked slowly upstream keeping her eyes open for the wolf, Carlisle or Embry.

"Here," Demetri had returned hardly a minute later. He handed her a small pile of clothing. He turned around while she changed.

He had guessed her size almost perfectly on everything. She pulled on a blue bra, loose white v-neck and jeans that were just slightly too large.

"I went into some girl's bag who looked about your size," said Demetri appraising his outfit choice. "A tourist, I figured you wouldn't be too thrilled with the regional garb."

"Thanks," said Leah quickly, "can we catch Joham now? Is he still at the airport? Where are Embry and Carlisle?"

"Yes, he is," said Demetri, eyes darkening. He lifted Leah into his arms without warning and sprinted through the desert so quickly all of her surroundings blurred. While he ran he informed her, "Carlisle brought Embry to the hospital."

Leah's stomach clenched with worry. She could not imagine reporting to Jake, Quil and Seth if Embry never recovered. But what if she never recovered? She pushed the thoughts from her mind. They were too frightening to focus on.

It took five minutes to reach the airport. "He's moving," said Demetri urgently. He broke into a human run and Leah ran after him. They dove, shuffled and squeezed around people who shouted after them indignantly.

Guards attempted to stop them, but Demetri spoke quick, urgent Arabic. They hesitated and Demetri pushed them to the side. He had just made it into the terminal area when a halfy flung itself on top of him. Leah put on a burst of speed as Demetri threw it against a bench.

She hurdled herself, 100 percent still human, onto the halfy slamming its head back into the seat of the bench. "Get Joham!" She shouted at Demetri.

He paused in a moment of uncertainty before he turned and disappeared. The halfy regained itself and slammed Leah onto her back. Leah slammed her fist into its face. It was like punching concrete. She felt her hand break, but she had also, successfully, disoriented her opponent.

She kicked it in the chest, then the face, so it fell on its back onto the floor. She had to keep it from going after Demetri and interfering with his pursuit of Joham.

The creature was mad. It twisted its face into a snarl. Leah realized it was a girl who appeared about her own age. The girl launched herself back at Leah with enough force to send them both sliding across the airport floor a good fifteen feet.

She gripped into Leah's hair and Leah desperately ripped her head from its hold. The girl kneed her in the stomach and Leah blanched as pain spread up her torso. The girl went for her hair again and tried to pull Leah's head to the left, but Leah grabbed her arm. The girl was trying to break her neck. Or rip her head off. Leah wasn't excited by either option.

The guards and other humans were trying to break them apart. A large guard grabbed the girl's arm, but she turned, too quick for him, and snapped his arm. Leah managed to escape from underneath her. Another guard attempted to restrain the girl, but she kicked him in the leg and Leah heard another snap.

Distracted, she had no time to react when a hand grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her away from the crazed scene. She whipped her head around and was relieved to see Demetri. But then she noted the look on his face.

"He got to the plane."

"When does the next one leave?"

"Five minutes."

* * *

Not Mine all Stephanie Meyer's! Thank you so much for the reviews they are so encouraging! :)


	10. The Wilderness

Chapter 10

The Wilderness

Demetri called Felix while they sat waiting for the plane to take off. The flight attendants watched him, in obvious distress over his disregard for the rules, but unwilling to chastise him. Leah shook her head and rolled her eyes. Humans were just as ridiculous as vampires, really.

Next, he called Carlisle. At that point, a flight attendant finally came over to tell him to put his phone away. He apologized and smiled at her requesting a water and a sandwich.

"What do you want food for?" Asked Leah.

"You. And Embry came around. He's conscious, but weak and can't phase."

Leah felt a mixture of relief and concern. Relief because Embry had woken, but now the question remained. Would they ever be able to phase again? Leah felt as though acid had spread throughout her core and she swallowed in attempt to ease the pain. She could not imagine her life as a normal human again. She had wanted that once, to stop phasing, but, now, it was a part of who she was.

Her hand was completely healed as were the bruises she had received from her fight with the halfy. That gave her hope that, eventually, she would be able to shape shift again, but nothing was certain. Maybe it would go the other way. Maybe, slowly, she would lose her healing ability, as well.

Demetri sent her a discerning look. "Relax," he said, "when we find Joham we'll sort everything out."

The plane took flight and Leah tried not to think about her predicament.

"Is Carlisle meeting us in Russia?" She asked.

"When Embry is ready to leave, yes."

"Everyone in Russia is doing ok?" It was really her inquiring about Seth, she didn't particular care about the others, well, Emmett, but she was sure Emmett could take care of himself.

"They are all fine. They've been following Joham's alleged partner around and some other new children."

"So I guess we're ditching the whole 'fair trial' thing, huh?"

He hesitated, "Only if he insists on attacking us again. We'll still offer them a peaceful solution."

Just then, her sandwich and water arrived. She hadn't realized how hungry she was until she saw the food.

"So that was Joham, huh?" She asked when she finished inhaling her food.

"Indeed," said Demetri, "he's been quite busy. Last year, we were informed he only had four children."

"Well, if you're right, he's enlisted some help." She paused and looked up at Demetri. "I feel sorry for them, the halfys. He's got them all brainwashed and we're going to end up killing a bunch." She shrugged, "They just never had a choice."

Demetri gazed at her thoughtfully, "Very few vampires had a choice. I, personally, only know two."

"Tia and Bella?" Leah guessed.

Demetri nodded. "Secrecy is extraordinarily important. It ensures our survival now that human technology has produced weapons that could eradicate us. Joham threatens our security with his experiments allowing these women to live and bear his children."

"They all die in the end," Said Leah, noting that Demetri's words sounded oddly scripted. She guessed Aro had drilled them into the Volturi guard. She switched her thought process from the Volturi back to Joham. She wondered how many women had died just as Huilen's mother, just as Bella nearly had. Yes, Joham had to be stopped.

"How far behind them are we?" She asked feeling, suddenly, anxious.

"Five or ten minutes. We may be able to catch them right when we arrive in Russia, depending."

"Depending on if I can phase."

"Exactly."

Leah closed her eyes tightly. She didn't want to think about it. She tried to go to sleep, but was too agitated. She wanted to rest her head on Demetri's shoulder, but couldn't bring herself to do it. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable, anyways.

She thought about the story of his sister and the pain in his voice and on his face when he told it to her. It was shocking to see a vampire, especially a member of the Volturi, exhibit so much emotion.

Her eyes darted to Demetri's current expression. It was the usual facade of vacancy. It was hard to imagine that the same face had exhibited as much emotion as it had earlier.

Leah wondered how life was at the reservation. She wondered if everyone was getting ready for the wedding. She wondered how her poor tribe could afford to purchase the plane tickets. She hoped Sue wasn't stressed. She felt a quick stab of guilt. She should have been there with Sue now, helping her prepare. Instead, she was chasing some crazy vampire around the Eastern Hemisphere.

The plane ride felt excruciatingly long. Leah began tapping her foot on the ground as they descended towards the runway. Her heart was pounding faster than she had imagined was possible. What if she couldn't phase?

She rushed out of the plane to the dismay of those seated in front of her. She sprinted through the crowd and found her way to the exit. She ran out into the street, jumped a guardrail and landed in the woods below. She closed her eyes. And nothing. She couldn't phase. Simply, she just couldn't.

Blood rushed to her head. She held onto a tree, afraid she would faint.

"Where is he?" She said, in a whisper. She knew Demetri would be there, behind her.

"Gone," Said Demetri. "We should start on our way to meet the others." He handed her a backpack and a jacket. "I packed you some supplies. They are quite some ways away. It may take us a couple days to reach them."

"You should just go without me, I'll only slow you guys down."

"And leave you alone to go up against any vampires that come your way? I don't think so, your pack would rip me to shreds if any harm came to you. Now, follow me. We are going to rent a car and drive it as far as we can before heading out on foot."

Leah grabbed the jacket, pulled it around her, and then placed the backpack over her shoulder. She attempted to appear calm, collected, but, on the inside, she was in a state of hysteria. What if the injection had no cure? What if she would never shape shift again?

Demetri led her back into the airport where he paid for a car rental. He led her out to the garage to a rather small subaru. Leah got in the passenger's side and rested her forehead against the window. Her throat felt tight, but she refused to cry. The movement of the car was comforting and she managed to fall asleep.

They drove for a good four hours north. Leah slept the whole time and only woke when the car rolled to a stop and the engine was turned off.

"You can sleep a while longer, if you need. We have a long walk ahead of us."

"I'm fine," said Leah opening her door and stepping out into the freezing air. Luckily, her body temperature was a good deal higher than normal humans and the cold hardly bothered her.

The Russian terrain consisted of frozen ground, tall trees, mostly pines and thick underbrush which ripped her jeans and left a collection of scratches on her shins. A thin, frozen sheet of ice covered the ground making the simplest task of walking perilous. Demetri offered to carry her, but she didn't like the feeling of being carried. It made her feel helpless and inadequate. Plus, she needed the physical work to distract her from her worries.

"How far are they?" Asked Leah after a couple hours of tripping and trudging through Russian brush.

"Approximately one hundred miles."

Leah looked towards the sky. It was beginning to get dark. They stopped to set up camp. Leah attempted to put up the tent while Demetri started a fire. The night grew uncomfortably cold, even for Leah.

She found gloves and a hat in the backpack and put them on. She sat beside Demetri, close to the fire.

"You're shivering," said Demetri. He pulled off his cloak. Leah didn't want to take it from him, a third time she realized, but she couldn't resist the promise of warmth. She wrapped it around her shoulders.

She looked at Demetri who laid on his back wearing only jeans, boots and a short sleeve white polo. He had one arm behind his head and one resting across his stomach. The flames cast shadows dancing across his face highlighting his cheekbones and jaw. She couldn't help, but let her eyes wander, taking in the perfection of his form. She noticed the beginning of a scar on his neck. She remembered noticing it in the alley with the immortal child.

"Where'd you get the scars?" She asked.

"You can see them?" He asked, surprised.

"Yeah, it's a wolf thing. We have better eyesight than normal humans."

He sat up next to her. "Well this one," he gestured toward the one visible on his collarbone, "that was a werewolf. It was my first fight as a part of the Volturi. Felix was in charge of training me for combat. He thought it would be most effective to throw me in a fight with a couple children of the moon and advance from there." He laughed, "I got my arm tore off and this, here, but I won."

"Do we resemble them when we're wolves?" Leah asked, curiously, referring to the werewolves.

Demetri shrugged, "Somewhat, but you don't behave like them. Werewolves have little control over their actions. Their instincts drive them to hunt and werewolves will eat anything; humans, animals, vampires, but, I suspect, they enjoy the fight with the vampire the most. They're extinct now, though. Caius made sure of that."

A sharp gust of wind blew and Leah felt the cold in her bones. She shuddered and edged closer to the fire. "We don't usually get cold easily," she said, "I haven't actually been cold since I started phasing."

"It's at least twenty degrees below freezing," said Demetri eying her with surprisingly genuine concern.

Concern? She was surprised he cared so much about her personal discomfort. She looked over at him and laughed.

"What's funny?" He asked, taken aback.

"Nothing, we're just a vampire and a shape-shifter sitting in the middle of the Russian wilderness talking about the weather." She laughed again.

Demetri cracked a smile and leaned in staring at the fire. After a few minutes, he laid on his back again. Leah reminisced of tribe campfires and celebrations. If Seth were here, he probably would have started singing or dancing the traditional tunes and dances.

She looked curiously towards Demetri. She wondered if he knew how to dance. She wondered, if she were to ask him to dance, what his response would be. She laughed softly at her own thoughts.

Demetri caught her stare with his eyes, still blue. "What are you thinking of now?" He smiled at the end.

Leah shook her head, and smiled to herself, "Nothing."

"Come on, tell me."

"I'm going to head to bed. I'll be in the tent." She stood and took her leave just as it began to snow. She looked back towards Demetri, tempted, once more to ask him to dance, but she didn't. She, Leah Clearwater, was not like Seth, she could not dance to no music. Nor, could she sing and create some herself. And she, certainly, couldn't ask a vampire to dance with her.

That night she dreamed that she had asked Demetri. And he said yes. They danced around the fire to her favorite tribe songs. She taught him all about the traditions of the tribe. Then, her tribe appeared around her. She was worried they would hurt her and Demetri for dancing together, but they gifted him with a dove and welcomed him. The winter turned into summer and they all danced together. Soon, the Cullens were there also and Tanya, Kate and Garret.

Leah could have remained in that dream forever, but she awoke to a high, powerful, screeching wind. She fell back asleep and, in the morning, could hardly remember the dream at all.

She got up the next morning, reapplied her layers of clothing, and left the tent to find Demetri. She wondered how he had faired spending the night out in the snow.

He stood by a tree holding his phone to his ear. He appeared to have just stood up and had snow on his shoulders, clothes and in his hair. Leah listened to him finish a conversation in Italian. He was frowning deeply and gritted his teeth in frustration.

"A few of Joham's children and a couple vampires ambushed Felix, Tanya, Emmett and Seth this morning. They got Seth with that stuff, but, don't worry, he seems ok. He can't phase, but, otherwise, he's fine."

Leah closed her eyes, briefly. She felt a mixture of relief, anger and worry. Relief, because Demetri promised Seth was fine, anger, because she hadn't been around to protect him and worry, because they still had no idea what this injection's long term effects were.

"We need to get moving." She said upon reopening her eyes.

"You should eat something, first."

"I'll eat on the way."

Leah took a couple granola bars out of her bag and began eating. She realized how hungry she was and started on an apple, afterwards.

She caught Demetri staring at her with envy.

"You haven't eaten in awhile," she remarked.

He shrugged, "I didn't think it would be a polite decision considering my company."

"But you need to eat and I wouldn't mind if it weren't humans."

Demetri wrinkled his nose, but then laughed. "They got Felix to eat a tiger the other day. Tried to convince him to eat a boar, but he refused to eat anything that wasn't strictly carnivorous."

Leah smiled, "Let's see you hunt a tiger, then."

Demetri smirked, "Shouldn't be difficult."

"Prove it."

He reached out and grabbed her arm. "Hold on for a second." He sniffed the air. "Follow, quietly."

Leah followed him a good couple of miles. He brought his finger to his lips as a reminder. He crouched down and Leah joined him. They crouched until her thighs were sore, but she remained motionless.

Sure enough, Leah heard the soft tread of paws stalking towards them. The Russian tiger moved at an excruciatingly slow pace. Meanwhile, Demetri made no movement. Leah almost feared he had petrified. The cold air remained immobile as well.

The tiger strode out in front of them only a couple of feet. Leah held her breath. The creature was at least four feet from paw to shoulder. Its head made it nearly five feet tall. It's body was muscular and lean. It walked with the instinctive confidence of a predator. It was beautiful, powerful, king of the forest. It reminded Leah of Demetri.

She didn't even see him move when he did. One second, he was there, and the next, wind rushed by her right side and Demetri had barreled into the tiger. The two hunters tumbled through the snow and bushes.

The tiger made a valiant attempt to claw at Demetri's head, but Demetri caught its leg and snapped it with a squeeze of his hand. He held it on the ground under his knee and grabbed its head with his other hand. He pulled its head forward and Leah heard a second snap. The creature fell limp and Demetri leaned over it. It had taken less than ten seconds.

"What the hell am I supposed to do with all this fur?"

Leah couldn't help, but laugh. "Stop delaying, Demetri." She teased.

He smiled a bit and shook his head before biting into the neck of the tiger. He stayed like that for about a minute. Then, sat up spitting. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

Leah laughed so hard she had to sit back on the ground. "So? Did you enjoy your meal?"

"Do I have fur in my teeth?" He asked, leaping down to where she sat on the ground so they were about a foot apart. He bared his teeth an inch from her face. They were white, straight and fur-free.

"You're clear," she said, giggling.

_Did I just giggle?_

"We should get going again," he said. Leah stared at his eyes. Blue.

"Take out the contacts," She said, curious.

He stood up and did as she asked. She stood too and looked up at his face. His eyes had turned a muddy brown. She figured it would take a couple more animal kills for them to turn the gold of the Cullens. If Demetri took any more animal kills. The thought made her strangely uncomfortable. She wished all vampires were like the Cullens, then, she wouldn't have to hate them.

"What color are they?" Demetri asked.

"Brown," said Leah turning away from him, her smile gone.

She began walking. How old was Demetri? Hundred and hundreds of years old. How many times had he hunted? How many humans dead at his hands, slaughtered, just like that tiger? How much innocent blood consumed? It had been so easy. So easy for him to overpower a 300lb tiger. No human would ever stand a chance.

She wouldn't stand a chance. Not like this. Not when she couldn't phase.

She shot Demetri a cautious glance, wondering, if he sensed where her line of thought had gone. He seemed to be mulling something over in his own mind.

He had said he use to hunt humans like those men she had fought off. Perverts, the cruel and overconfident, but that had stopped that when he joined the Volturi.

"What are you thinking of?" He asked, softly. He was staring at the ground as he walked.

"You could kill me now. Make it look like an accident."

"Why would I do that?"

"I don't know, you're the one who's part of the Volturi. You tell me why you would want me dead."

"I don't."

"You've killed plenty of humans before."

"Yes, I'm a vampire. That is what we eat. I can't change my nature."

"The Cullens did."

"I'm not a Cullen."

"Clearly."

He stepped in front of her so she walked right into his chest. Her heart jumped in surprise and he held her by her arms pulling her close to his face.

"Why do you do this to me, Leah? You hate me then you act like maybe we could be..."

"Friends?" Leah suggested with a derisive laugh, but immediately after felt badly for mocking him. "I forget what you are sometimes, but I always remember again, and, I don't know, our kinds are natural enemies."

"I'm a who not a what, Leah. I may be a vampire, but I still feel and think. We have hopes, dreams, things and places we like, things we don't like. I mean, I told you about my sister hoping it would help you understand me, trust me."

Leah looked away from him. A combination of emotions spun around inside her. Prominently, she felt guilt. He had brought up the story about his sister. Yes, she believed him, vampires could feel. Then, how come they could murder humans so effortlessly? But, she did trust Demetri. Somehow, she had come to trust him.

"I don't think I'll ever understand vampires, but I do trust you, to an extent."

He gazed into her face, lips slightly parted in surprise. The wind blew slightly, blowing snow into his hair and onto his eyelashes. His eyelashes were long and dark. They framed eyes that were perfectly shaped for his face. His cheekbones created dark shadows across his cheeks. His jaw was defined to the point it appeared as though it had been sculpted. Everything about him was perfection and, realizing just hoe handsome he was, she could hardly bear to look at him any longer. Her neck ached and she realized they had been standing there, eyes locked, for, well she didn't know how long, but a pretty long time. He still had her by the arms.

She cleared her throat and attempted to pull away from him. He released her and turned away, walking again.

"Sorry, I hope I didn't hurt you," He murmured.

Leah became aware of the pain in her upper arms, but it disappeared not a couple seconds later.

"I'm fine, I don't feel anything." She rolled her shoulders to prove it.

He nodded, but didn't smile or say anything else. Leah wished she hadn't ruined the easygoing atmosphere between them. She resolved to reinstate that ambience from earlier by the time they met up with the rest of the group.

Leah was extremely pleased with herself. It was a few hours past their argument. They had stopped by a large stream so Leah could boil some water to drink. She had been telling Demetri about meeting the vampires from around the world last year. She had made him laugh four times in counting.

His laugh was beginning to give her a warm, fuzzy feeling whenever she heard it. It had a sort of musical quality that only vampires could possess. She checked on her water which was at a steady boil. She poured it into a canteen and laid it in the snow to cool.

"Thanks for getting this soaked, Clearwater," Said Demetri holding his cloak over the fire.

She had given his cloak back to him for the day after she tripped probably a hundred times.

She laughed, "Oh, come on, you don't actually need it to stay warm anyways." She sat on her bag on the ground and watched the stream roll by. They were silent for a few minutes and Leah wished she could hear Demetri's laugh again. She closed her eyes and was surprised when she saw his face there burned in her mind with snowflakes in his hair and on his eyelashes. Her heart, unexpectedly, skipped a beat.

"Are you okay?" Asked Demetri, staring at her.

He must have heard her heart. Stupid vampires and their super hearing.

"Fine," Said Leah, grateful that, at least, he couldn't read minds.

"What were you thinking of?"

"None of your business, Leech."

Demetri stalked towards her. "Take that back, Clearwater, or you are going to regret it."

Leah rolled her eyes, "Well that was cute. You trying to threaten me, I mean."

Demetri sent her a wicked grin. "One more chance to apologize."

"Dream on."

She should have been expecting it, she was expecting it, but her heart still jumped in surprise when Demetri crossed the ground between them in one leap and grabbed her by her waist. He tossed her over his shoulder.

The next second, she was dangling backwards over the stream with her head only a couple inches above the water. She could feel her hair being pulled downstream. It was going to be soaked. Demetri had her arms pressed against her sides. He was straddling her, leaning forward so his face was closer to hers.

"Want to tell me what you were thinking about now?"

"Not at all, now let me up, my hair is going to be a giant popsicle."

"I warned you," said Demetri, "I'm holding you here until you agree to tell me what you were thinking of."

"You want to know that badly?"

"I want to know that badly."

"Fine, I was thinking about vampires."

"What about vampires?"

"Let me up."

Demetri got off of her and pulled her up onto the land again.

She twisted her hair and let the water drip out. It managed to get all over her jacket and jeans and she growled in annoyance. He couldn't have held her hair above the water, too? She sat by the fire.

"I was thinking about killing vampires. The process."

"There's a process?"

"I'll explain. First, it's the thrill of the chase. Choosing your target, smelling their scent. Then, it's the fight. Vampires are always one of two things; cocky or totally shocked. The cocky ones think they can win because they are vampires so they fight and the shocked ones are the runners. I prefer the chase, but I don't mind a fight."

"You're the fastest wolf of the packs, correct?" Asked Demetri.

Leah nodded, "Yeah, so I like the chase. I like the sound the wind makes in your ears and I like the thrill of slowly gaining, knowing, they can't escape, that I'll catch them. Once you get close enough, you jump with everything you have because you only have one chance or else you'll have to fight. You aim for their head, of course. If you don't rip it off and you only knock them to the ground, your own chances of failure increase. Your nails sink into their back for grip and you have to twist your neck to get a good hold with your teeth."

She paused, thinking. "You feel them moving underneath you, alive, cold, but alive. You can feel whatever organs you vampires have left working. You hear them intake breath, in surprise, because they realize they are going to die. By this time, your teeth have sunk all the way in and you pull backwards to rip their head off. Sometimes, they try to scream, and you feel that too. The vibrations go right through your teeth into your mind and the rest of your body. But, you already have your death grip and their head comes off and there's no more screaming."

She looked up at Demetri's face. He was watching her, intently. "The last thing you taste is blood. You realize it isn't their blood, it's the blood of whoever they killed last. That taste stays with you. You can turn back into a human, brush your teeth, wash out your mouth with soap, but that taste stays." She moved her gaze away from him and towards the forest.

"You were thinking about that?" Asked Demetri.

Leah laughed halfheartedly, "No, that's not what I was thinking of."

He didn't answer immediately, but stood and began pacing on the other side of the fire. "Emmett is on his way towards us. They must have heard us. He'll be here in not two minutes."

Leah felt strangely unsettled. He heart kicked up a couple notches. She felt like there was something she should say or do before Emmett got there.

"Did you really mean that, Leah, when you said you trusted me?" Demetri was on his knee in front of where she sat.

She looked into his brown eyes and they reflected the same urgency she felt.

"Yeah, I did, I do."

Demetri looked somewhat pleased with her statement and stood on his feet again. Leah wanted to pull him back down closer to her. Just then, something barreled into her from behind lifting her up off the ground.

Emmett spun her around while he hugged her, laughing. He placed her back on the ground. "I know how much you love being swept off your feet."

"Ha, Ha good one," Said Leah dryly, but she was glad to see Emmett.

"I would say it's time for you two to join back up with the rest of us, we are in serious need of a plan."

* * *

There it is chapter 10! Thank you so much for the reviews they really are awesome :) sadly, I have to add that none of this is mine! All the brilliant Stephanie Meyer's!


	11. Long Knives

Chapter 11

Long Knives

Leah

Emmett, Tanya, Seth and Felix had found an old wooden supply house stocked with blankets, food and other emergency supplies. A fire roared from within the fireplace, warming the small cottage. They gathered in the main room with the intention of forming some sort of plan to capture Joham. A light snow had begun to fall outside.

Leah felt antsy and helpless knowing she wouldn't be able to partake in any fighting. However, she did make one argument. She pointed out that, in the airport, she had held her own against a halfy, only to have her agrument met by such opposition that an outsider would have thought she proposed they cut her up and serve her to Joham on a gilded platter.

Seth had a strange, haunted look in his eyes at odds with his natural amiable disposition. Leah knew his inability to phase was the cause. What worried her more than Seth's fear was the fact that the others shared it. Vampires and wolves alike carefully avoided discussing the possible outcomes of the injection.

"We shouldn't make any sort of move until Carlisle arrives." Tanya stated fiercely daring the others to disagree.

"They only just arrived in Russia within the hour," said Demetri attempting to sound impassive, but Leah heard the urgency. He wanted to end this chase as soon as possible, she could tell.

"How many miles?" Tanya inquired.

"About 50," said Demetri.

Leah wondered if she had heard right. Hadn't Demetri told her 100 when she'd asked during their journey? Maybe Carlisle and Embry had landed in a closer airport? Perhaps they were traveling faster than her and Demetri? Or, more likely, Demetri had lied to her, but why? Leah decided not to dwell on it since there were more pressing matters, but she shot Demetri a look of suspicion. He skillfully avoided her eyes.

"Not too far away then," said Felix, "we could begin to hunt Joham down and Carlisle could catch up."

"I don't think we need to worry about hunting Joham down," said Demetri, "He's coming after us." His words were solemn now and his eyes darkened. "They're on the move. It will take them two hours tops to find us."

"Should we go somewhere else, then?" Asked Seth, alarmed.

"Won't do much good. We won't get very far. We just have to hope Carlisle and Embry move quicker than our enemies." Said Demetri.

"How many?" Asked Felix.

"Two vampires, Joham and the assistant and at least seven halfies, but there could be others I'm just not aware of."

Emmett snorted, "Only two vampires, we can take them. Correction, I can take them. You old ladies can just sit snug here."

Felix chuckled, but Tanya and Demetri continued to look worried. Leah tried to weigh their fighting chances in her mind. Emmett, she knew, was a good fighter and Felix was famous for his ability. She had seen Demetri fight in Egypt and knew he was good. She didn't know about Tanya, but was fairly confident the fierce vampire could hold her own.

The four vampires commenced to discuss battle strategy while Leah sat with Seth outside beside the cabin.

"So, how was your Volturi experience?" Asked Seth.

Leah laughed and reflected on her time with Demetri. She thought about the jokes, the arguments, the Russian tiger. She thought about her strange attraction to the sound of his laugh and how her heart had nearly stopped when that image of his face popped into her mind. As if she was going to share any of that with Seth.

She shrugged, "Interesting enough."

"That's all?" Asked Seth frowning, "because I was surprised. Felix is a pretty nice guy when he isn't about to massacre us and all the people we love. I didn't think I would like him, but, I don't know, we got along."

"I'm not surprised, you love vampires, Seth," Leah teased, elbowing him.

Seth's expression turned unexpectedly serious. "Don't make fun of me for caring about them, Leah, I know you do too."

"Sorry, Seth, didn't mean to offend. Of course I care about the Cullens."

Seth nodded, but he was still frowning.

Leah thought about her own statement. Yes, she cared about the Cullens, but was it more than the Cullens now? The thought of Tanya, Kate, Garret, Eleazar or Carmen in danger frightened her as well. Maybe it was not only Seth who had grown attached to the Denali Coven.

Leah thought process switched to the imminent battle ahead. Every single one of her companions would be in danger. They could be killed. Leah's mind forcefully contrived an image of a headless Demetri. The thought scared Leah more than she could have ever expected. Perhaps, then, a certain Volturi vampire had a found a way into a small piece of her heart. As a friend, of course. Just like the Cullens or the Denalis. And not even as prominent as any of them. He had lied to her, after all. She wondered why.

Meanwhile, Seth was doing his own pondering. Leah had never seen him frown for so long in her life. Well, after their dad died...Leah repressed the memory.

The four vampires materialized beside them.

"They'll be here very soon," Said Demetri. He sat down next to Leah. His eyes were soft and still brown when they met her own.

"I'm sorry you can't fight, but there will be more battles in the future."

"For you," said Leah, "I, on the other hand, prefer a peaceful, quiet life." She smiled at the end to let him know she was joking. She didn't doubt there would be future battles, but she did worry whether she would be able to participate. "You'll try to find out about the injection stuff, right?" She asked quickly.

Demetri was still smiling from her joke when he responded, "Of course, we want to take Joham, alive, back to Aro."

Right, this was a Volturi mission. With so many wolves and Cullens, Leah had almost forgotten.

"Do you think you can win?" She asked him quietly. For once, she was grateful Seth had been distracted by Tanya so that he wouldn't hear her question.

"I don't know yet," He answered softly. Then, he pressed his lips together tightly. "If it seems like we can't then you and Seth run."

"We won't make it far."

"Don't say that!" Demetri exclaimed sounding agitated. "I bet you are still a fast runner as a human and you can fight the halfies to some extent so even if some of them come after you, you still have a shot." He sounded more like he was trying to convince himself of all this.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," she said somewhat dully. She still wished he, Tanya, Felix and Emmett would let her fight. They sat in silence. Demetri talked to her on and off, but she could tell he was trying to focus on the approaching opponent.

"They're here," He murmured for her ears alone. He made to stand up, but Leah grabbed hold of his hand. She didn't know why she did it. She hadn't planned to, but there she was sitting, in very close proximity, she realized, with this Volturi vampire holding his hand because...why? Why had she grabbed his hand? Fear was coursing through her bloodstream which didn't make sense either. She wasn't fighting, she had no reason to fear. She stared into Demetri's surprised eyes with alarm and confusion.

"Leah..."

That was all he said, just her name. Her alarm finally caught up with her. She dropped his hand and jumped to her feet. She could feel that she was blushing. Demetri stood beside her. Still so close, if he had been human or wolf, she would have been able to feel the heat from his arm. She stepped away.

"They're here," He announced to the group.

"And so are we," Carlisle and Embry appeared from the forest. Embry looked just as shell shocked as Seth did and as Leah felt.

"Carlisle, I have never ever been so happy to see your beautiful face," said Tanya with obvious relief. Carlisle smiled at her with some amusement.

"I could kiss you," Emmett added for emphasis.

"Save it for Rosalie," Carlisle teased.

Hearing his optimism made Leah feel instantly reassured. With Carlisle present and on their side, how could they not win?

"So this is how the Cullens prepare for battle," Felix remarked.

Everyone's laughter was cut off by distant growling heard across the small clearing. Leah looked up, her first thought being, _Demetri was wrong about the numbers._

Seth grabbed her arm and pulled her back towards the cabin. The three wolves barricaded the door and ripped the curtains from the window. They watched a small battalion line up against Carlisle, Tanya, Emmett, Demetri and Felix. Three vampires in counting and eleven halfies of varying ages. Leah didn't like the odds, but she supposed the halfies may not have much fighting experience. It would be the vampires her side would have to worry about.

**Demetri**

** Locate the target. He was front and center. Just as Demetri suspected he would be. They had decided Joham would be his. He was second best fighter, after Felix, of course, and he could chase Joham down if he tried to run. **

** Joham and his companions did not slow in their approach. Demetri growled deep in his throat and took one preparatory step forward. He would let Joham come to them. **

** In the back of his mind, he was aware of the house behind him where Leah waited completely helpless. He almost groaned in frustration. He could not fail her. He could still fell her warm grasp on his hand. He could see the fear in her eyes. Fear for him? He liked to think so. It could have been fear for Seth or herself or the Cullens, but he wanted to think it was for him. Either way, he would not allow himself to fail her. **

** Joham stopped some 15 feet away. Close enough that Demetri could reach him in one leap, but he resisted the temptation. **

** "The Volturi has come to destroy my children." Joham stated.**

** "We've come to end an outrageous and dangerous experiment," Demetri replied with a growl. "You have the option to surrender peacefully and come with us to stand trial." **

** Joham laughed. "Yeah, right, I heard about the last time the Volturi promised a trial. Almost wiped out a quarter of the vampire population. No, I won't participate in any phony trials of the Volturi's." With that stated, Joham sprang into attack. **

** Demetri calculated his momentum and stepped out of the way at the last moment. He spun on his heel and caught Joham by the back of his shirt. He kicked the vampire into the cold ground while the battle erupted around them. **

** Joham spun onto his back and kicked Demetri back with such force that the tall pine he hit snapped in half. The next second, he was back on the offensive charging Demetri, but Demetri lept into the air and spun over Joham's head so he landed directly behind him. He grabbed the other vampire by the back of the head and kicked him in the back of the legs. Joham fell to his knees and, for a moment, Demetri tasted victory, but he got distracted by the sudden lighting of a torch nearby. Additional halfies had arrived bearing fire. **

Leah

The fighting had been going pretty well for the first couple of seconds. Demetri took Joham while Emmett and Felix took the other two vampires. Joham and Demetri's fight was fairly equal. Emmett's vampire had a talent for dodging and diving so Emmett couldn't get a punch in, but Leah didn't doubt that, when he did, the vampire would be done. Meanwhile, Felix was successfully pulverizing his own vampire and fighting three halfies at once. Carlisle and Tanya skillfully kept the rest of the halfies from getting to the house where Leah, Seth and Embry hid watching through the one window.

"Shit!" Seth exclaimed as more halfies streamed from the trees with huge torches in their hands.

"This guy has been busy, huh?" Embry commented.

Leah could have slapped him for cracking a joke at a time like this, but, in reality, what else were they going to do?

There was obvious dismay among Carlisle, Tanya, Emmett, Felix and Demetri at the arrival of the fire. Their lives were really on the line now.

Leah searched the scene frantically to relocate Demetri and Joham. The pair moved so fast that her human eyes often lost sight of them. Her heart seized up when she found them. Demetri, now, was the one on his knees. Joham had an arm around his neck. Leah couldn't breath.

Demetri elbowed Joham in the gut and then grabbed the vampire by his shoulders and threw him over his head, releasing himself. Leah's heart commenced beating again.

But the fight was not in their favor. Leah found herself fearfully anticipating who would be the first dead. Seth expressed her fears.

"There's no way they can keep this up. One of them is going to mess up," Seth said, eyes wide and fearful. Leah could hear the truth in his words and, not two seconds after they were spoken, a scream hit the air.

Leah stared, horrified, as Tanya's arm parted from her body. Seth roared with rage. He bolted to the door and destroyed the barricade before Embry and Leah could even fully register what was going on.

"SETH!" Leah screamed and she ran to him just as he managed to kick down the door.

Instantaneously, two halfies who got past Tanya and Carlisle were upon them. Seth's eyes displayed a fierceness Leah had never seen. He slammed his fist into one's face knocking it clean to the ground. He landed a kick on another. Embry joined in the fight against them. Leah watched, impressed, as her pack members, in human form, held their own. But, they were not strong enough to kill the halfies and Leah suspected they would tire before their half vampire opponents.

She sprinted back into the house and desperately searched through the emergency supplies. Finally, she found what she needed. It was a long and sharp hunting knife. Bearing this, she ran back out into the frenzy.

Embry was trapped beneath a female halfy who was trying to get his head in her grasp. Leah rocketed herself at the girl and barreled into her, knocking her off of Embry. With speed she didn't know her human self was capable of, she stuck the knife into the girl's neck. The girl twisted and struggled underneath her, clawing helplessly against the knife hilt and Leah's hands. Eventually, she fell still.

Leah looked up and noticed that each vampire had stopped to watch. She then looked at her own hands. The blood, of course, but it was less than to be expected, much less. Halfies must not carry as much blood as humans. In fact, she was almost certain of it. She remembered how Jasper had been closer to attacking Quil when he got a paper-cut than when Renesmee stepped on Charlie's broken beer bottle.

Her allies recovered before Joham and his vampires. Felix floored the vampire nearest him, Emmett's punch grazed his vampire's shoulder for the first time and Demetri twisted Joham's arm around. Surprisingly, Joham hardly moved until the arm began to rip off his body. Leah caught a quick, thirsty look in his red eyes. He was very hungry. There were no humans to eat in the Russian wilderness and they had kept Joham on the move for the past three days.

Leah climbed quickly to her feet and looked to where Seth still struggled against a halfy.

"Seth!" She called out. He moved so he stood in front of the halfy and Leah threw him the knife. He caught it and turned on the halfy again. The fight was over in a minute. Seth, Embry and Leah retreated to the doorway of the house. Leah scanned the battle. Tanya, with one arm, could only fight a couple halifies at a time. Joham had made an amazing recovery and managed to retain both of his own arms. Emmett was growing frustrated and, consequently, sloppy. The other vampire seemed to be gaining the upper hand on him. Carlisle was disappearing under a mountain of half vampires which, not even Felix, could make a break in.

Joham's battalion amped up their attempts to inflame the enemy. The fire caught on Felix's cloak and he was forced to shed it. Next it caught on Carlisle's pants and he had to roll in the snow allowing halfies to nail him there.

"We're gonna lose," Seth whispered, his eyes wide.

Leah looked back to Demetri's desperate fight against Joham.

"No," she said, "we're not."

**Demetri**

** They were going to lose. Demetri could hardly believe it, but he could recognize that the battle bordered on futile. The halfies were better trained than they had imagined and Joham was a better fighter than he had anticipated. **

** To make matters worse, Leah and her pack had left the safety of the house and fought against the halfies, specifically, against his advise, no, his orders. But, of course, she hadn't listened to him. When did she ever? But now he was worried about her and it was distracting him from Joham. **

** The crazy vampire scientist floored him and growled viciously in his face while attempting to get a hold of his arms so he could rip them off. Keeping his arms pressed safely against his sides, Demetri rolled forward, back and onto his feet. He angled his elbow to drill into Joham's neck. It was successful, but Joham recovered with shocking speed and escaped from underneath him. **

** The two stood facing each other again. Snarling. Sizing each other up. **

** Suddenly, something changed in Joham. He stopped snarling. He stood stock still. His eyes gained a kind of insanity that Demetri recognized well. Fearfully, he tasted the air. **

** The smell of human blood nearly overpowered his senses. Furthermore, he recognized the smell. He knew whose blood had been shed. He froze, much like Joham, but because he feared, if he moved, he would attack her. He would kill her. The distraction was enough that he wasn't prepared for Joham's vicious attack. He felt his arm tear off and his body flew backwards through the air.**

Leah

"No," she said, "We're not." She took the knife from Seth's hand and ran into the fray. Seth, realizing what she was about to do, tried to run after her, but he was intercepted by halfies, just as she had planned.

She stood in the center of it all. Little more than human. But, humans could be brave too. They could make a difference. She closed her eyes and slashed through her wrist with all of her arm's force.

The pain was terrible and red spots grew to encompass her entire vision, but, slowly, she regained some of her sight. And there he was. Standing in front of her. Joham smiled down at her with fraudulent reassurance.

He took her wrist in his hand. She was too dizzy to even consider fighting him. He pulled her close to his cold body. She was surprised. She thought he would go for her wrist. One of his arms wrapped around her waist and the other locked into her hair.

"Don't fight, sweet one," He murmured.

_Carlisle...where are you._

She wasn't entirely suicidal. She knew she might die in the effort, but that hadn't been her plan. Of course, it was supposed to be Carlisle to come to her rescue. The only vampire unaffected by the scent of blood. The only one who would retain his sanity when she sliced open her skin. She knew it would be Joham who wouldn't be able to resist, but where, where was Carlisle?

His cold lips pressed up against her neck. Panic set in, but she was so incredibly dizzy. Only Joham's arm kept her upright. She hardly even felt the fangs. They didn't hurt at all, only a small pinch where his lips were let her know they were even there.

More and more of her strength faded away. She could no longer keep her eyes open. The sounds of the battle grew distant. Memories and faces swam in her head. She saw Seth, Sue, Charlie, the Cullens, her pack and Demetri, but her mind chose Sue to focus on. She would never see Sue married now. She wouldn't be there to hold her mother's hand and share in her joy.

Carefully, she forced what she hoped was a smile across her face. She wanted her dead body to look peaceful for when Sue viewed it. She hoped Seth wouldn't tell Sue how it happened. She hoped he would make something better up. Maybe, they would make her sound heroic. That would be nice.

_You are a hero, Honey, they don't need to make that up._

Leah knew that voice. She knew it well. It had sung her to sleep after she had nightmares, gave her advice during the darkest times in her life and told her "I love you" time and time again.

_Dad? Henry? Am I dead? _She had to be dead if she could hear Henry Clearwater's voice. But, if she was dead, how come there was an annoying itch starting in her neck?

_Leah, Leah, Leah, my daughter is even more beautiful than I remembered. I am so proud of you, Leah. So proud of you._

_ I'm sorry, Dad, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to phase I didn't want it I'm so sorry._

_ You have nothing to be sorry for, my love._

_ I do! I do! I killed you! I got angry and I phased and I killed you! It's my fault! Because I'm a freak! _

_ No, Leah baby, I wasn't healthy. It wasn't your fault. _

_ Now that were both dead and we can be together, I'll make it up to you. _Even as Leah promised this the itch in her neck became painful. It was burning. Her heart began to beat like crazy. Her heart? But she was dead.

_No daughter of mine is going to die today. No, no you still have a long life to fulfill and people who need you._

_ No, Dad, no I want to be with you! I miss you so much. I miss you everyday. I don't want to do this anymore. _The pain was becoming unbearable. She could hardly focus on her conversation with Henry. It had spread from her neck to her shoulder. She could feel it burning, ever so slowly, down her arm.

_I lived my life and it is time for my daughter to forgive herself and live hers to its fullest potential. _

_ No, no, no, no, no! Dad, no it hurts! _

_ You're right, life does hurt, but the joy outweighs the pain every time._

Leah wanted to explain to him that she wasn't talking about life, she was talking about her neck and her shoulder and her arm.

_Leah, I have to leave you now, but remember this, I love you always. _

_ Don't go! Don't leave me again! _But he was gone and the burning escalated. It escalated until it consumed Leah's every thought and, just when she was certain her heart would stop, it began to recede.

**Demetri**

** He pulled himself off the ground. Joham had hurled him fifty feet from the scene of the battle. Demetri grabbed his severed arm and winced as he allowed it to mend with his arm socket. Meanwhile, he made his way, much too slowly for his liking, to rejoin the battle. His eyes desperately scanned the chaos. The smell of Leah's blood threatened to overwhelm him. He could see Joham's mind in his head as it made its way toward Leah's. **

** Demetri desperately fought his way through the crowd. Their minds had overlapped. Panic set into his chest. He ripped the head off a halfy who tried to stop him. But it was a waste of precious seconds.**

** Finally, he saw them with his own eyes. Joham had one arm wrapped around her waist and, with the other hand, he had her neck tilted to the side. His fangs sank deep into her neck. Demetri experienced a powerful overload of rage. With bared teeth, he flew at Joham knocking halfies out of his way as he went. He leapt up and over some 6 or 7 of them and slammed into Joham. He ripped the vampire off of Leah and her unconscious body collapsed into the snow. **

_**Joham first, Joham first. **_

**Joham, disoriented by his feeding frenzy, stood no chance. Demetri kicked his front into the ground and grabbed the back of his head. He pressed his foot into Joham's back and, with brutality, ripped his head off. The next second, Carlisle was by his side with a lit torch. Demetri leapt to the side and watched Joham's body go up in flames. **

** The effect was immediate. Halfies stared in petrified horror. Emmett and Felix took advantage of the distraction to decapitate the other two vampires. Felix set his on fire and passed the torch to Emmett. **

** "No!" Demetri exclaimed, "Aro wanted Joham alive, but seeing as that is not going to happen..."**

** Emmett nodded and passed the head to Carlisle while he held onto the body. The halfies scattered. None of them bothered to chase any. Aro would send lowlier guards to do that. **

** "Leah!" Seth's alarmed cry woke Demetri from his moment of savage victory. **

** He knelt beside Leah and stared at her in dismay. So much blood. So much blood had pooled around her. Even more would be inside of Joham. Would she survive? Would she change or would her heart stop too soon?**

** "Get out of the way," Carlisle ordered. Demetri backed away, but only a couple of feet. **

** "What are you doing?" Asked Demetri with trepidation. **

** Carlisle kneeled over Leah and lifted her body onto its side so the neck with the vampire bite was exposed. **

** "What's he doing?" Demetri redirected the question at everyone, anyone, else. **

** "He has to get the poison out of her," muttered Tanya whose arm had reattached. **

** "Why? That's impossible." Said Demetri, frustrated. He felt like he was missing something extremely important. **

** "Vampire poison is deadly to shape shifters," Tanya continued, "It will kill her, if he doesn't." **

** Demetri watched in horror as Carlisle sank his teeth into Leah to remove more blood. He had wrapped her arm in his jacket to stop blood from escaping there, but Demetri doubted it would help much. **

** He wanted to look away. He didn't want to watch her die. Not like this. Mortality. He hadn't really thought about it in awhile. It had never posed any threat to him. He was immortal as were everyone he cared, even remotely, for. Not to mention, they were virtually indestructible. But there was Leah. So fragile, so human, despite her incredible ability to shape shift. And the thought of her dead scared him. He could only remember one time he had come face to face with mortality in this way. **

** Carlisle pulled back. "The poison is out, but we have to get her to a hospital. Immediately. She's lost too much blood. Way too much blood. Demetri, carry Leah and come with me," Carlisle ordered. **

** Demetri didn't argue. He was fastest here. It made sense that he would be the one to bring Leah to a hospital. He lifted her as gently as he could. She was still much warmer than himself, but not nearly as warm as she should have been. **

** "Please, run fast," Seth whispered beside him.**

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Thank you so so much for the reviews! you guys are awesome! I'm sorry this update took FOREVER I'll try to be faster

As always, Disclaimer: this is allllllllllllll Stephanie Meyer's


	12. Heavy Words

Chapter 12

Heavy Words

Leah had been engulfed by darkness, but, at least, the pain was gone. On the other hand, her world was silent and so very lonely without Henry's comforting voice. Henry, who had promised her she would not die. And, yes, she was not dead. But, she was not alive either. She was in between. First, she tried to go back to Henry, to join the dead. She tried to sink into the darkness and away from all of her problems, but they continued to reappear with violent force the more she attempted to push them away.

She could not make herself die so she attempted to waken. She thought of the moments in her life when she had felt most alive. The first time she slept with Sam, the first time she ran through the forest as a wolf, that acute pain she had felt for so long after Sam left her.

Surprisingly, she found herself thinking about her time with Demetri. Him holding her over the river or teasing her or stunning her with his beauty. Once she started thinking about Demetri it was hard to stop, but she didn't want to think about a vampire. She didn't even understand why she was.

She fought against her Demetri memories and tried, again, to go back to Henry.

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

Noise.

And weakness.

Heaviness.

Some pain.

She was beginning to regain her senses which meant she was beginning to wake up, but not quite yet.

Darkness and, again, she was alone with her thoughts.

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

She could hear beeping on a monitor. The atmosphere was calmer than it had been when she nearly woke before. Now, she could remember urgent voices, shouts and many people touching her.

She shuddered at the memory. Her eyes were still closed. She tried to open them, but they felt so heavy. It was dangerous that they would not open at her command. What if she got attacked? What if there was an emergency? There was a whole world of possible scenarios where blindness would be equivalent to death.

She tried again to lift her eyelids, but it was as if someone had tied weights to each of her eyelashes. Maybe, she actually needed someone to attack her. At least then she would have some real incentive.

"Leah?" The voice carried a smooth, almost musical familiarity.

Leah's eyes flew open and Demetri's face spun above her. Demetri. Hadn't she just spent the last, who knew how long, engulfed in darkness thinking about Demetri? Demetri and Henry.

Demetri smiled and sat down beside her. She couldn't move her neck yet so only her eyes followed him. Desperation filled her chest. She needed to tell him. She needed him to know.

"I-..." Then her voice failed.

"Shh," said Demetri frowning at her anxious expression, "I'll get Carlisle and Seth."

"No!"

Demetri stopped in his tracks, confused.

"I killed him...Demetri, I killed-" Her voice failed again. It was so hard to speak.

"You didn't kill anyone, Leah," said Demetri calmly, "you must have dreamed it."

Tears welled up in her eyes. No, she had not dreamed it. Just as he had not dreamed killing his sister. If only she could get the words out, but they were such heavy words and she felt so weak.

"Leah?" He sat again and leaned in closer to her. Haltingly, he raised his hand and stroked her cheek. His touch felt so good it made her want to cry even more. The words were heavier now that he had done that.

"I killed." Pause. "My father." The weight lifted and Leah regained some control of her limbs. She managed to turn her body partly onto its side to face Demetri. "About two years ago," She continued, "It was an accident, I swear." Tears streamed down her face. "After you told me about your sister, I wanted to tell you."

He just stared at her. His fingers were still brushing her cheek, but they were motionless. He had froze. No, his eyes were traveling her face slowly.

She feared it had been a mistake. Maybe, she shouldn't have told him or, maybe, she wasn't saying it right or, maybe, it was a mistake to bring up his sister. But, wow, had he always been so handsome? She was suddenly glad he had froze there, in front of her. His hand on her cheek moved cautiously to cup the left side of her face. The look in his eyes was so tender, so understanding that she felt a new certainty she had not made a mistake.

He leaned in closer to her and the beeping from the monitor increased in speed. He was still perfect, even so close. She could count his eyelashes, see the different streaks of brown and red in his eyes and the way his nostrils flared slightly as he breathed in her scent. So perfect. He took her breath away.

When he kissed her, the monitor went berserk. His lips were soft and cold, but heat spread throughout her body. She could feel the blush on her cheeks and the longing in her heart. It had been so long since she had experienced that. She wished her arms didn't feel like lead so she could wrap them around his neck.

But, too quickly, it was over. Then, the drugs were taking effect again. She could feel herself slipping away and losing grip with reality too quickly for her to process what had just happened. Demetri spun in her view. He had just kissed her. Right? Or wrong? A vampire from the Volturi had just kissed her? She opened her mouth to ask him if that actually just happened, but he was gone and so was she.

The darkness was back. Leah, again, lay alone with her thoughts. This time, she struggled to decipher between what might have been reality and what might have been imagination.

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As always thank you so so so so so much for the reviews!

(not mine, stephanie meyers')


	13. Ceremonials

Chapter 13

Ceremonials

"Leah! Oh my goodness you need to stop scaring me like this! One more 'your daughter is almost dead' call from Carlisle and I'll have to lock you in a tower!" Sue was hugging her so tightly it hurt.

Leah had arrived back in Italy just in time for the wedding taking place the following day. She and Sue went up to their hotel room. Sue feared she would be too excited to go to bed and, consequently, requested that Leah act as her baby-sitter to ensure that she at least attempted to get some sleep.

"So, Mom, it's your last night as a single woman." She smiled at Sue who had a nervous shake to her. Leah had to pour water for them both in fear she would spill.

"I know. I'm not nervous though, just excited. Charlie is one of the best men I have ever known." She sighed, "You know I loved your father, right, Leah?"

Leah smiled a bittersweet smile, "Of course, and I know he would want you to be happy."

Sue paused and Leah allowed her silence to reminisce. "Would you like to see your dress?" Asked Sue, at length.

Leah laughed. Her mother was more excited to see Leah in a dress than she was to wear her own wedding gown. "Sure, it can't be too awful if Alice helped you choose it, right?"

Sue pretended to be insulted, "You doubt my judgment?"

"No girl wants their mother choosing any of their clothing," Leah pointed out.

"I suppose I won't be choosing clothes for my twenty-one year old much longer, huh?" Sue appraised her sadly as she walked over to the closet to retrieve the dress.

Leah couldn't help, but gasp when she pulled it out. It was dark blue with a gold patterned design. It had straps, but basically no back and was extremely low cut. It looked more expensive than the rest of the wedding combined.

"It's amazing," she whispered.

Sue smiled and put it back in the closet, "Thank Alice tomorrow."

Part of Leah wished she could just study her gown for the next couple of hours, but, then, she remembered the job Sue assigned her.

"You should head to bed, Mom, it's getting late."

Sue sighed, "Yes, it is and it's a big day tomorrow."

Contrary to her worries, Sue fell asleep five minutes after shutting off the lights. Leah, on the other hand, laid awake in bed. Demetri hadn't been at the hospital when she really woke up. She wondered if she had imagined the first time she awoke. She had so many drugs pumping through her system it was entirely possible she hallucinated the whole incident or, more likely, dreamed it. She couldn't be sure. She would have to ask him. She turned bright red just thinking about posing the question. What if she had made it up in her head? She would only embarrass herself, but what if she hadn't?

She wondered when, if ever, she would see Demetri again. She didn't doubt Aro would call for her and her pack again, but would Demetri be there? Would she get a moment alone with him? She could answer none of her own questions. But why did she care so much? She should hope she had only dreamed it. Kissing a vampire, that was ridiculous. Vampires were her natural enemies. They drank human blood and smelled pretty bad most of the time.

But Demetri, somehow, undeniably attracted her to him in more ways than one. Leah cursed herself for the thought. She needed to stop this. She needed to stop thinking about him, especially, like this. Starting tomorrow, she would ban all thought of Demetri from her head.

..._But did he kiss me or not?_

It was a warm day in Florence, Italy for the beginning of February at 60 degrees and sunny. For Leah, it was almost perfect. She preferred it a bit colder, but, for the dress she was wearing, it was perfect.

The dress, oh the dress. She would never admit it, in fact, she would shoot herself in the foot before she admitted to anyone that she had spent an hour spinning in it, sitting in it and just admiring it on her while Sue was in the shower. Alice had spent the day helping them both get ready. The result was breathtaking. Lucky for her, her wolf healing ability had not been effected by Joham's injection and all wounds were healed. Leah could not remember a moment when Sue, or herself, had looked better.

Finally, it was time. Leah stood to Sue's right while Seth stood to her left. The ceremony was taking place a few miles outside of the city. She looked across the beautiful green landscape and rolling hills. There was a makeshift archway covered in red flowers at the end of a long aisle separating rows of white chairs.

Carlisle had sent for a private jet to fly the whole wedding party out to Italy a few days earlier. Of course, it was still extremely expensive to stay in hotels, but everyone had banded together with as many as three families sharing a single hotel room in order to afford it. Leah, heartened by their sacrifice, gained a new appreciation for the tribe. She had never been more proud to be one of them.

"They're about to start the music!" Sue said, her voice almost a squeal.

Nervousness gripped at Leah and she found herself unable to breathe. Her heart was racing and blood rushed to her head. She tried to remind herself that she was not the one getting married.

Then, the music began. Sue pulled Seth and Leah forward with a huge smile spread across her face. Leah caught a glimpse of her brother and was grateful to see he looked just as nervous as she felt. Everyone stood. Leah had planned on playing the friendly daughter, waving and smiling in greeting, but found her entire focus on keeping pace with Sue and trying not to cry or trip or let her nerves show in any way.

They reached the end of the aisle and the first person Charlie hugged was herself. He was beaming and their were tears in his eyes. Leah smiled back. Sue had been right, Charlie was a great man. He would keep Sue happy and safe and provide for her. He would be there to comfort her when she and Seth left for life threatening battles against vampires. He would be there if anything ever happened to them, and, for that, Leah was more grateful than she could ever express in words.

He moved to hug Seth then took Sue's hand in his own. Seth moved to stand behind Charlie while Leah moved behind Sue next to Bella who smiled at her and gave her hand a quick squeeze. Leah smiled back. The woman who had almost caused the destruction of her pack, the Cullens and the supernatural world as they knew it would be, in minutes, her sister. If Leah from a couple years ago had known that...Leah smiled to herself at the thought.

For the first time, she looked out into the faces of the crowd. Almost instantly, her eyes found a face she did not expect to see.

"Why are Demetri and Felix here?" She asked in a whisper to Bella while the crowd laughed at a joke the preacher told.

"They got invited. Carlisle thought it would be best to just invite them instead of having them lurk around in the shadows all night. Seth was all for it, he sent them last minute invites."

Leah couldn't decide whether she was glad or not. At least, she could try to talk to Demetri. She winced at the idea. Or not. If he wanted to talk about it, he would bring it up.

She tried to focus on the ceremony, but her eyes kept darting back to the Volturi vampire. He seemed to be doing a much better job paying attention to her mother's ceremony than she was.

The ceremony wasn't too long. Leah managed to tune into the exchanging of the vows and rings, and clapped along with everyone else when they kissed sealing the deal. Bella actually hugged her for excitement.

"I haven't seen Charlie look so...so...happy in years," She laughed.

Leah smiled back, sharing in her joy. Following Bella's lead, she hugged Charlie and Sue and they went together as a family to talk amongst the guests. Nearly every person had brought a present and wanted to personally congratulate the happy couple.

Last were the vampires. Leah couldn't even imagine the cost of their gifts. Sue seemed to be thinking along the same lines and handled each package carefully as she placed them on the pile.

Felix and Demetri, too, brought a gift. Leah could tell Sue remembered meeting Demetri after the immortal child incident and knew he was Volturi. She was proud of her mother for showing no fear and shaking their hands graciously.

"I wonder if all of the Cullens' friends, you know, look like that." Charlie murmured to Seth. Seth chuckled and shrugged in response. He caught Leah's eye and they shared a smile.

The Denali sisters both brought their own gifts. Eleazar and his wife brought a gift, as well.

"We brought gifts for each member of the family," said Carlisle smiling towards Seth and Leah, last of the Cullens to approach.

"Oh, we can't accept gifts from you, Carlisle! You have already done so much, flying everyone here!" Sue exclaimed.

"We insist," said Esme with a dazzling, kindly smile.

Finally, the gift giving ended. Leah had never spoken with so many people in such a small amount of time before. She was use to the company of her pack, the Cullens and her immediate family and that was all she needed. She use to be closer with other members of the tribe, but the secret of being a shape shifter had been too much for her to maintain relationships with human friends. She felt a moment of sadness. She did miss human company sometimes.

"You two get going," Edward offered to Sue and Charlie, "I'll pack the gifts away in the car and bring them over to the hotel."

"I can help you pack," Seth added quickly.

"Sure, I'll take Nessie, too. You can go with everyone else." Edward added in Bella's direction.

"Well, don't I have just the most helpful sons," Said Charlie with a smile while he wrapped his arm around Sue. "We will take you up on that offer."

Charlie and Sue bid farewell to Bella and Leah and made their way back to the car they had rented for the occasion. A red chevrolet truck.

"They drag us all the way out to _Italia_ to have their wedding then go and rent a truck." Said Leah.

Bella laughed, "It's a mix of the two of them. Italy for Sue and a truck for Charlie!"

"Bella, Leah, it's time for the party, come on, Emmett's driving." Alice skipped over to the two of them with a wide smile on her face. As usual, her voice danced on the line between song and normal speech. She looked incredible with a short, periwinkle dress and huge gold heels she still managed to skip in and, Leah had no doubt, could dance in as well.

Bella and Leah walked over to join the large group of vampires. They attracted glances from the tribe and humans, but their looks were less hostile than Leah expected.

"Leah!" Felix greeted her enthusiastically. "So, I heard no one warned you we were coming?" He smirked.

Of course, he had heard her ask Bella why they were there, vampires heard everything. But, he had brought up an interesting point. Why did no one warn her?

"Don't look so unhappy, Lupa, we're just here to enjoy the party."

"No, it's quite alright with me," She reassured him with a somewhat forced smile directed towards him and, also, Demetri who stood watching their conversation at his side. She wasn't annoyed they were actually there she was annoyed _no one had told her they were coming. _

"In that case, you look quite magnificent." Felix winked at her.

"To the car," Emmett interjected, "you're with me or Carlisle, we're racing, so choose wisely."

The group of vampires plus Leah made there way back up the dirt path and towards the parking lot. Leah made quick eye contact with Demetri while Alice chattered in her ear about the shopping trip she and Sue had taken to find Leah's dress. It seemed she had taken Felix's compliment to Leah personally and gushed about every detail of how she had found the dress, hair styles she had planned, but eliminated and everything Leah couldn't stand to talk about.

Leah sent Demetri a helpless expression as Alice jumped into an explanation of the differences between chiffon and brocade. Demetri smirked in response and fell in step with Eleazar directly in front of them. Leah took the time to look him up and down, or rather, his back up and down. The vampires had dressed to kill. No pun intended. Each of the male vampires' tuxedos looked brand new and, Leah didn't doubt, were of expensive making. The long dresses fit as though they had been designed uniquely for each female vampire who wore them. Shiny, new heels were matched up with each gown along with jewelry, mostly diamonds. They were, hands down, the best dressed group at the wedding.

Most of the members of the tribe had worn black suits while the wolf packs had rented tuxedos which they didn't know how to put on and needed lessons on from the man at the rental store. Leah dearly regretted missing that. The human girls and women of the tribe wore the same dresses they had worn to every formal event for the past two years.

The 15 vampires piled into two escalade rentals, driven by Emmett and Carlisle as Emmett had promised. Leah noted that only vampires could make jumping over a back seat while wearing an ankle length dress look graceful. She ended up between Rosalie and Alice who talked about different dress designers the entire ride, taking little notice of Emmett's chaotic driving. Leah thought about Demetri some. She decided she was very glad he was there. Maybe more glad than she should be.

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Thank you, as always, for all of the reviews! And I apologize, yet again, for taking so long to update!

All Stephanie Meyer's


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